Disappointed by the performance of the Council of Indigenous Peoples (CIP), pan-blue Aboriginal lawmakers said yesterday they were planning to restart the Aboriginal caucus.
The decision came despite reported opposition from the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus leadership.
“It’s been a year since CIP Minister Chang Jen-hsiang [章仁香] took office, yet the council’s administrative efficiency is well below our expectations and it really needs improvement,” KMT Legislator Chien Tung-ming (簡東明) of the Paiwan tribe told reporters at the legislature.
“Since Aboriginal legislators are in the minority, we can’t accomplish much if we each work on our own,” Chien said. “That’s why we need a caucus to unite Aboriginal lawmakers across party lines for the welfare of all Aboriginals.”
Currently, there are a total of seven Aboriginal lawmakers belonging to the KMT, the Democratic Progressive Party, the Non-Partisan Solidarity Union, and the People First Party (PFP).
The Aboriginal caucus has existed since the fourth legislature but gradually ceased to operate during the sixth legislature because of internal conflicts.
As the CIP under the present KMT government has failed to live up to the expectations of Aboriginal lawmakers, we believe it’s about time to restart the caucus, Chien said.
“With such a platform, we can work together to talk about Aboriginal issues and monitor the government’s policy implementation,” said KMT Legislator Yang Jen-fu (楊仁福), an Amis and co-founder of the Aboriginal caucus.
“In the caucus, Aboriginal welfare is more important than the welfare of political parties,” he said.
Yang admitted that the KMT caucus leadership opposed the plan.
“Although we’re not seeking to establish an official caucus to go against any party caucus, they [the KMT caucus] said they don’t want to see any secondary groups,” he said.
KMT caucus whip Lin Yi-shih (林益世) denied reports that he had voiced opposition to the Aboriginal legislators’ plan, calling a story in the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper) an “exaggeration.”
“There is no plan to reinstate the sub-group. It’s impossible for me to oppose something that doesn’t exist,” he said.
Lin said the lawmakers were simply trying to push a draft bill on establishing an autonomous region for Aboriginals.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY FLORA WANG
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
EVA Airways on Saturday said that it had suspended a pilot and opened an investigation after he allegedly lost his temper and punched the first officer several times as their plane was taxiing before takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport. According to a report published on Thursday by The Reporter, the incident occurred after the flight’s Malaysian first officer tried to warn the Taiwanese pilot, surnamed Wen (文), that he was taxiing faster than the speed limit of 30 knots (55.6kph). After alerting the pilot several times without response, the first officer manually applied the brakes in accordance with standard operating
The New Taipei City Social Welfare Department on Thursday celebrated Paralympic competitor Chen Tzu-wei (張孜維), who received last year’s national Golden Eagle award for exemplary achievement by Taiwanese with disabilities. Chen, who suffers from childhood-onset muscular dystrophy, did not attend the first award ceremony held by the Ministry of Health and Welfare in November due to illness. Chen was formally presented with the award at the department, where he gave thanks to government workers for supporting his education and livelihood, the department said in a statement. Chen was raised by the Ai-hsin Home for Persons with Disabilities in the city’s Bali District (八里)
RSS