While it continues to experience a net loss of residents, Hualien County’s population of Aborigines has risen, the latest information from the Ministry of the Interior shows.
As a result, Aboriginal Hualien County councilors are demanding that the county government increase its budget and programs for Aboriginal welfare and social services.
Hualien County Civil Affairs Department Deputy Director Hsiao Ming-chia (蕭明甲) said ministry statistics show the county’s population of 323,897 as of December last year had declined from a high of of 358,981 in 1995. Due to emigration and other factors, the county’s population has decreased by 25,084 over the past 18 years, an average reduction of 1,393 people per year, he said.
The county has seen its population of Aborigines rising to 91,143, the highest ever for the county, the statistics show.
The latest data from the ministry indicated that of the 91,143 Aborigines, 35,172 are residents of mountain townships, while 55,971 are residents of lowland townships.
Aborigines now make up more than one-quarter, or 28.13 percent, of the county’s population.
“Our overall population decline is due to many reasons. These include people migrating to other cities and regions of Taiwan to seek better job opportunities and the low birth rate of our young married couples,” Hsiao said.
“The Hualien County Government is taking action to mitigate the population decline by introducing several incentive programs,” he added.
Among the programs are two mass weddings each year are sponsored by the county government, a NT$10,000 subsidy for each newborn child, free tuition for children aged four and over at public kindergartens, tuition vouchers for children attending private kindergartens, free tuition for elementary school and junior-high school and subsidies for students’ school lunches, Hsiao said.
“We hope these programs can boost the birth rate of Hualien County residents and halt the negative population growth trend,” he said.
Hualien County Councilor Tibus Yilay, an Amis Aborigine, said the increase in the Aborigine population was welcome.
“It enhances the proportion and total number of Aborigine residents in our county. However, the current government policies for Aborigines’ welfare and social services remain insufficient,” she said.
“Many Aborigines cannot find jobs, or have low incomes. They are an underprivileged group in society that needs support,” she said, adding that she will cooperate with other Hualien County councilors to improve rights protection and social welfare services for Aboriginal residents of the county to improve their living conditions in accordance with the rise in population.
Taiwan from Thursday is to reinstate visa exemptions for passport holders from 65 countries. Mandatory quarantine for arriving travelers is to be lifted on Oct. 13 , when restrictions on inbound and outbound tour groups are also to be lifted. The following is a list of answers to common questions regarding how the new regulations are to affect inbound international visitors Which passports will have visa-free entry privileges? Eleven more countries on Thursday are to join 54 countries that were given visa-free privileges on Sept. 12. Passport holders from Japan, South Korea, Chile, Israel and Nicaragua can stay in Taiwan for up to 90 days without a visa. Taiwan is also to resume 30-day visa-free stays for citizens of the Dominican Republic, Singapore and Malaysia. Passport holders from Thailand, Brunei and the Philippines are to be allowed to stay in Taiwan for 14 days visa-free. Taiwan on Sept. 12 resumed 90-day visa-free entry for passport holders from the US, the UK, Ireland, Canada, Australia, New
PRIDE AND FURY: Supporters of the Taiwan People’s Communist Party sang in Tainan, while Taiwan loyalists in Kaohsiung vowed to ‘protect Taiwan until death’ Two small Taiwanese groups at the far ends of the debate over relations with Beijing marked the National Day of the People’s Republic of China yesterday with flag raisings and flag burnings — opposite responses at a time of rising tension over the Taiwan Strait. Oct. 1 marks the day that Mao Zedong (毛澤東) proclaimed the People’s Republic of China in 1949, with the defeated Republic of China government fleeing to Taiwan at the end of that year, where — after democratic reforms — it remains to this day, neither recognizing the other. China’s national day is not officially marked in any
Adolescents aged 12 to 17 can start receiving the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine from tomorrow, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday, adding that the second phase of inoculations using Moderna’s bivalent vaccine would begin next week. The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices has recommended that the Novavax vaccine can be administered to adolescents aged 12 to 17 as their primary series of vaccines or as a booster shot. It also allowed a mix-and-match approach. The Novavax vaccine is a good choice for eligible recipients who are worried about possible adverse reactions from other COVID-19 vaccines, said
‘CONSENSUS’: The CECC would brief the Cabinet on its reopening plans if data show that a local outbreak proceeded as it had predicted, Premier Su Tseng-chang said The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) could announce today that it would fully reopen borders on Oct. 13, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said yesterday. Su in the morning inspected Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to check if airport personnel were prepared to cope with an expected rise in passenger volume today, when the weekly cap for international arrivals would increase to 60,000 people. The requirement for a saliva-based polymerase chain reaction test upon landing is also to be waived. The CECC last week announced that a zero-quarantine policy for international arrivals could be implemented from Oct. 13, depending on the local
RSS