The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed amendments to the Organization Act of the Council of Indigenous Peoples (原住民族委員會組織法) stipulating that the head of the Council of Indigenous Peoples would rotate between members of lowland and mountain indigenous groups while committee members from all indigenous groups would no longer be paid wages.
The amendments also state that two of the three deputy ministers must be from lowland and mountain indigenous groups.
The council should have between 19 and 29 members serving a term of two years, and they would be allowed to serve consecutive terms, the amendments say.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The amendments also state that the positions would be unpaid.
The Council of Indigenous Peoples yesterday said the amendments severely undercut indigenous people’s rights, adding that it plans to contest the amendments or ask for the Constitutional Court for an interpretation.
The appointment of a minister to the council should be based on ability, and a policy forcing the rotation of such a position would prevent talented people from being selected, it said.
The amendments are at risk of legal overreach as they infringe on the premier’s right to appoint personnel, which contravenes Article 53 of the Constitution and Constitutional Interpretation No. 613, it added.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Saidhai Tahovecahe (伍麗華) said that separating lowland and mountain indigenous groups was an antiquated relic of colonialism and that the amendment contravened the Constitution.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Sra Kacaw (鄭天財), one of the people who proposed the amendment, rebutted the accusation that the distinction was a relic of colonialism, citing how the distinction has been maintained by all iterations of the Local Government Act (地方制度法) throughout the years.
The amendment was a move to support indigenous peoples’ right to politics, he said.
Independent Legislator May Chin (高金素梅), co-author of the amendment, said that Saidhai Tahovecahe and others stood to benefit from the current system, adding that if every member of the council represented their people, 14 out of 16 would be DPP supporters.
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Chang Chi-kai (張啟楷) said that it was wrong for the DPP to place their supporters in the council and be paid by the state.
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Costa Rica sent a group of intelligence officials to Taiwan for a short-term training program, the first time the Central American country has done so since the countries ended official diplomatic relations in 2007, a Costa Rican media outlet reported last week. Five officials from the Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security last month spent 23 days in Taipei undergoing a series of training sessions focused on national security, La Nacion reported on Friday, quoting unnamed sources. The Costa Rican government has not confirmed the report. The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica protested the news, saying in a statement issued the same
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS