Aboriginal rights activists yesterday rallied on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei, calling for changes to place names in Aboriginal regions across the country from the current government-imposed names that hold political connotations.
Dozens of activists yesterday rallied on the road in front of the Presidential Office Building, protesting the government’s naming of places such as Guangfu Township (光復) in Hualien County and Fusing Township (復興) in Taoyuan County.
The term guangfu literally means “restoration of Taiwan,” referring to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime’s takeover of the country after the Japanese surrendered in 1945, while the term fusing means “revival of the nation,” referring to the KMT regime’s goal to reclaim the mainland.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
In addition, Renai (仁愛) and Sinyi (信義) townships in Nantou County mean “benevolence” and “fidelity and honesty” respectively, while Heping District (和平) in Taichung means “peace.”
“There are 55 Aboriginal townships around the country, but during 30 years of the Aboriginal rights movement, only the former Wufeng Township (吳鳳) in Chiayi County and the former Sanmin Township (三民) in former Kaohsiung County have been successfully renamed — Alishan and Namasiya — so far,” said Yapasuyongu Akuyana, a Tsou Aborigine representing the Indigenous Peoples’ Action Coalition of Taiwan, addressing demonstrators and the media. “As more and more tribal elders who still clearly remember the original Aboriginal place names are leaving us, those names will eventually be forgotten if we don’t stand up to demand the change now.”
“Wufeng” is the name of a historic figure who is said to have sacrificed his own life to “correct” the headhunt custom of Tsou Aborigines, while “sanmin” refers to the Three Principles of the People coined by Republic of China founder Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙).
Lin Shih-wei (林世偉), an Atayal artist from Jianshi Township (尖石), Hsinchu County, burst into tears while saying that the government has not only taken their lands, but also changed the names, forcing them into exile on their own lands.
“I am especially heartbroken that, despite our invitations, none of the Aboriginal lawmakers showed up in the rally,” he said.
Earlier in the week, a group of young Amis Aborigines from Tafalong and Fata’an villages in Guangfu protested the township’s name by painting the two villages’ names and the question “whose restoration is it?” on the walls of the Guangfu Township Office.
‘NON-RED’: Taiwan and Ireland should work together to foster a values-driven, democratic economic system, leveraging their complementary industries, Lai said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday expressed hopes for closer ties between Taiwan and Ireland, and that both countries could collaborate to create a values-driven, democracy-centered economic system. He made the remarks while meeting with an Irish cross-party parliamentary delegation visiting Taiwan. The delegation, led by John McGuinness, deputy speaker of the Irish house of representatives, known as the Dail, includes Irish lawmakers Malcolm Byrne, Barry Ward, Ken O’Flynn and Teresa Costello. McGuinness, who chairs the Ireland-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, is a friend of Taiwan, and under his leadership, the association’s influence has grown over the past few years, Lai said. Ireland is
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
An SOS message in a bottle has been found in Ireland that is believed to have come from the Taiwanese captain of fishing vessel Yong Yu Sing No. 18 (永裕興18號), who has been missing without a trace for over four years, along with nine Indonesian crew members. The vessel, registered to Suao (蘇澳), went missing near Hawaii on Dec. 30, 2020. The ship has since been recovered, but the 10 crew members have never been found. The captain, surnamed Lee (李), is believed to have signed the note with his name. A post appeared on Reddit on Tuesday after a man
A saleswoman, surnamed Chen (陳), earlier this month was handed an 18-month prison term for embezzling more than 2,000 pairs of shoes while working at a department store in Tainan. The Tainan District Court convicted Chen of embezzlement in a ruling on July 7, sentencing her to prison for illegally profiting NT$7.32 million (US$248,929) at the expense of her employer. Chen was also given the opportunity to reach a financial settlement, but she declined. Chen was responsible for the sales counter of Nike shoes at Tainan’s Shinkong Mitsukoshi Zhongshan branch, where she had been employed since October 2019. She had previously worked
RSS