People from an Aboriginal community in Hualien have been restoring an abandoned Shinto shrine, built during the Japanese colonial era, in an effort to reconstruct a past forcefully erased from history.
Payi, a senior member of the Qowgan (加灣) community of Truku people in the county’s Sioulin Township (秀林), said: “Restoring Qowgan Shrine is not to re-enact historical trauma, but to recover an unforgettable piece of collective memory dear to the [Truku] people.”
As part of a Japanese expansionist doctrine to exploit colonial resources in Southeast Asia, the then-Japanese government began the Kominka movement in Taiwan in 1936 to Japanize Taiwanese by asking them to worship at Shinto shrines and observe Shinto rituals at home.
Photo: Wang Chun-chi, Taipei Times
A campaign was carried out to set up a Shinto shrine in every town, and many shrines were erected in Aboriginal communities across Taiwan.
The Japanese left Taiwan in 1945 following Japan’s surrender in World War II, and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government retreated to Taiwan in 1949 after losing the Chinese Civil War.
Most Shinto shrines were either demolished or fell into disrepair after the Ministry of the Interior announced the removal of structures associated with the Japanese regime in 1974, two years after Japan severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1972.
Qowgan Community Association director Kao Wei-ning (高維寧) said the Qowgan Shrine, built in 1938, was abandoned to the same fate and had been left unattended since the KMT government decree.
She said she volunteered to lead the community to preserve the shrine, and that the community would apply to the Council of Indigenous Peoples for a subsidy to rebuild the structure and recreate a forgotten past.
To preserve the ruins, the community has refrained from machine-aided excavation, instead digging the buried structures using only hand tools, she said, adding that the excavation has proceeded to the main hall of the shrine.
The shrine is to be reconstructed in accordance with the seniors’ accounts, and the community hopes that they can also recreate the sacredness and tranquility that used to encompass the shrine, she said.
The 83-year-old Payi said he used to steal glances at Shinto priests where a decrepit torii — a structure marking the entrance to a Shinto shrine — stands, and the sight of a priest, in tailing white robe and a peaked black cap, had terrified him.
Although the Truku people hold a different belief to Shinto, the shrine should be preserved to commemorate that episode of history unique to the community, he said.
Historian Huang Chia-jung (黃家榮) said there are nearly 60 Shinto shrines in Hualien, and the Qowgan Shrine, with its torii, worship hall, main hall’s altar and stone fences around the main hall still remaining, is the most completely preserved shrine among those built in Aboriginal communities and is worthy of preservation.
He said he was greatly moved to see that the Qowgan community volunteered to restore Qowgan Shrine, which he hopes could attract more assistance with their reconstruction efforts, as well as a renewed recognition of history between the Aborigines and Japanese.
A NT$39 receipt for two bottles of tea at a FamilyMart was among the NT$10 million (US $312,969) special prize winners in the January-February uniform invoice lottery. FamilyMart said that two NT$10 million-winning receipts were issued at its stores, as well as two NT$2 million grand prizes and three NT$200,000 first prizes. The two NT$10 million receipts were issued at stores in Pingtung County and Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山). One winner spent just NT$39 on two bottles of tea, while another spent NT$80 on water, tea and coffee, the company said. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven reported three NT$10 million winners — in New Taipei
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
Taiwan is concerned that China could exploit the US’ war in the Middle East, with state media citing examples from the conflict to cast doubt on the efficiency of US weapons Taiwan would use to repel an invasion. Taiwanese officials said the resumption of Beijing’s large-scale air force incursions near Taiwan after an unusual decline show that China wants to take advantage of the redeployment of US forces from East Asia to the Middle East. “This is a moment for China to exercise influence,” a senior Taiwanese security official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “What China is trying to create is a
RSS