The Ministry of the Interior said on Thursday it would look into claims that more than 95 percent of the buildings on Orchid Island (also known as Lanyu, 蘭嶼) off Taiwan proper’s southeast coast were built without the proper permits, including the building planned to be used for the island’s first 7-Eleven convenience store.
As the island’s population consists of about 3,000 members of the Tao people, one of Taiwan’s Aboriginal groups, the ministry’s Construction and Planning Agency has contacted the Council of Indigenous Peoples to gain a better understanding of the situation, Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Chwen-jing (陳純敬) said.
Chen said that most of the land on Orchid Island is reserved for the native population and owned by the Council of Indigenous Peoples.
Aside from township offices, schools, public facilities and a Taiwan Power Co nuclear waste storage facility, almost every other building on the island has been built without a permit, he said.
He added that such buildings may have been allowed because the indigenous council had given special consideration to local residents.
Lanyu Township (蘭嶼) Mayor Chiang To-li (江多利) said he could not do anything about the problem, considering its scope, and had asked the central government for help.
He said that some older locals do not recognize the nation’s land registration rules, quoting them as saying: “This land is mine, so why should I have to register it?”
Building permits cannot be issued if the land is not first registered, Chiang said.
The focus on the unauthorized buildings came after a proposal by President Chain Store Corp, which operates the 7-Eleven chain in Taiwan, to open the island’s first convenience store met with concern.
Critics worry that the outlet would bring changes to the local culture and lifestyle.
Despite the controversy over building permits, President Chain Store said on Thursday that it would go ahead with the opening of the Orchid Island 7-Eleven store on Aug. 8 as scheduled.
Meanwhile, Chiang said that outsiders did not have the right to oppose the 7-Eleven store because it is the local residents who want it to promote tourism.
“Why should Taiwan [proper] oppose something that Orchid Island wants?” Chiang asked.
Taiwan’s biggest convenience store chain, 7-Eleven has outlets across Taiwan proper and on every outlying island except for Orchid Island.
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