A Supreme Court collegial panel on Thursday suspended an ongoing legal debate on Tama Talum’s case, saying it is seeking constitutional interpretations on regulations governing the use of weapons and wildlife conservation in light of their impact on Aboriginal customs and traditions.
Tama Talum, a 57-year-old Bunun Aborigine, was arrested in Taitung in August 2013 for allegedly violating the Act Controlling Guns, Knives and Ammunition (槍砲彈藥刀械管制條例) and the Wildlife Conservation Act (野生動物保育法).
The lower courts had ruled that he should be jailed for three-and-a-half years.
According to the panel, hunting is a centuries-old Aboriginal custom and modern laws should not be imposed on Aborigines without prior consultation or negotiations.
Aborigines have their own customs and practices in regard to people, land and mountains, including all flora and fauna, the panel said.
The restrictions placed on Aborigines by modern laws are stifling their rights as stated in the Constitution and the Indigenous Peoples Basic Act (原住民基本法), the panel said.
The Act Controlling Guns, Knives and Ammunition and the Wildlife Conservation Act disregard the lifestyle and traditions of Aborigines, it said.
The first act places strict regulations on the kinds of guns Aborigines can use for hunting, while the second act states that Aborigines can only hunt for traditional ceremonies, teaching purposes, academic research or when there is a spike in certain animals’ populations.
Neither act has been amended to reflect constitutional amendments and the Indigenous Peoples Basic Act, nor do the laws reflect the spirit of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights.
While the Republic of China had signed both covenants in 1967, they were not ratified until 2009.
The request to deposit the instrument of ratification was rejected by the UN on the grounds that Taiwan is not a UN member.
The Taitung District Prosecutors’ Office has also postponed the prison sentence for Talum, who was supposed to begin serving his sentence in December 2014, until the Supreme Court rules on the case.
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