Council of Indigenous Peoples (CIP) Minister Chang Jen-hsiang (章仁香) came under fire from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday at the legislature’s Internal Administration Committee, who called her leadership style “arrogant and passive.”
KMT Legislator Kung Wen-chi (孔文吉), a Sediq who authored the bulk of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) policies promising to improve basic infrastructure for Aborigines, said that after one year in office, the CIP had failed to deliver on any of the items included in Ma’s platform and that Chang’s “passive” leadership was to blame.
“Many Aboriginal groups have said the Ma administration bounced its check when it comes to the promises he made them. But the CIP is the government agency that handles the matter,” Kung said.
“What have you done lately besides going to ribbon-cutting ceremonies?” Kung asked, adding that activists had called for Chang’s resignation on numerous occasions over the past year.
DEFENSE
Chang, an Amis, said the proposal for budgets appropriation had already been submitted to the Executive Yuan for review, adding that many projects, including improving farm roads, had begun.
Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順), another KMT lawmaker, requested that Chang withdraw the current draft of the Aboriginal autonomy bill and other related documents that were tabled under the previous Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government and to push for the current administration’s version.
“You need to do it quickly because the legislature will soon be in recess and after the break we will be busy examining next year’s budget. If you delay tabling the government’s version of the bill, no progress will be made until this time next year,” she said.
KMT Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇), who is also committee chairman, urged Chang to withdraw the proposal immediately so that “the legislature won’t be forced to review a proposal submitted by the DPP.”
Chang said that an immediate withdrawal could be construed by the Aboriginal community as a signal that the government had failed to deliver on its promises.
The CIP will hold several public hearings to listen to Aborigines before writing a new draft, she said.
ERROR
Meanwhile, Huang said that in its online dictionary, the Ministry of Education (MOE) had recently listed the title “head leader” (頭目) as ringleader of a criminal organization.
In Aboriginal culture, the term is an honorable title bestowed upon the patriarch of a tribe who has demonstrated superior wisdom, leadership and bravery.
While Chang said she was unaware of the error, an aide said the MOE had agreed to make the appropriate corrections.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
RSS