Forum reaffirms need to consider interests of aborigines in reforming the constitution

Representatives from government agencies in charge of minority affairs echoed the call by community leaders and activists yesterday to follow the "enlightened" policies of the New Zealand and Canadian governments in protecting ethnic groups and aborigine rights. They urged the government to include such rights in the proposed revision of the constitution.

"In Taiwan we have a multi-racial and multi-ethnic society. It is important to promote equality and social harmony among the various ethnic groups," said Pasuya Poyichuno, deputy chairperson of the Cabinet-level Council of Indigenous Peoples. "We can learn from the experiences of rights protection and ethnic equality in the international community."

"We take lessons from the more enlightened policies found in advanced countries. Such is the case in Canada's constitutional protection and granting of self-autonomy for their "First Nation" peoples, and New Zealand's language and cultural-rights guarantees for her Maori aborigines," said Poyicheno, an indigenous Tsou leader from the Ali Shan region

The CIP deputy chairperson was attending a government-sponsored conference on "Ethnic Relationship and Cultural Development" yesterday, with the discussion forum included participants from the Hoklo Taiwanese, Hakka, mainlanders, indigenous peoples, and Ping-Pu plains aborigines, and also representatives from the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission.

During the conference organized by the Association for Taiwan Indigenous Peoples Policies, one of the main topics under discussion was the need to take part in government policy reforms to advance social and ethnic harmony. Another main topic was the request from aborigine peoples and other minority groups to entrench rights protection during the upcoming rounds of negotiation on the constitutional "reengineering."

"We have to recognize the fact that not everyone's ancestors came from China. The often-heard definition of Taiwan as an 'ethnic Chinese state' has totally ignored the existence of indigenous peoples, who belong to the Austronesian family of Asia-Pacific islanders," said Professor Shih Cheng-feng, a social historian and one of the panelists at the conference yesterday.

Prof. Shih endorsed the Canadian government's efforts in entrenching aboriginal rights in the country's constitution in 1982, and New Zealand's recognition of treaty rights for Maori peoples in the past decade.

Pushing for international standards in minority rights, Shih also cited 15 other countries in Latin America and Northern Europe, which have aborigine-rights clauses written into their constitutional charters since the late 1980s.

He also issued a reminder of the fact that Taiwan's indigenous peoples include the current 12 officially recognized aborigine groups as well as the Ping-Pu plains aborigines, who are not yet recognized the government.

The organizers had invited Interior Minister Su Chia-chuang, the head of the Council for Hakka Affairs, Luo Wen-jia, and the Council of Indigenous Peoples chairperson, Chen Chien-nien to attend the final round of discussions, but all three failed to attend, citing other commitments.

The head of the ATIPP and conference organizer Voyu Yakamangana, from the indigenous Tsou community, indicated his disappointment. "It is very regretful that these top officials were not able to attend. They had confirmed their attendance earlier, but then cancelled yesterday. We had a lot of constructive ideas and concrete policy suggestions from the participants here, and it would have been most useful for the government to listen to these voices."

During the concluding round of talks, a number of Ping-Pu plains aborigine activists spoke out against past and current government indifference to their group's struggle for official recognition, and requested urgent action to save their endangered culture and tribal traditions from extinction.

One of the plains aborigine activists lashed out at the "road-blocks" and barriers set up by legislators and government officials as well as society's apathy toward the plight of their people, and he demanded the establishment of a "Council of Ping-Pu People Affairs" to ensure rights protection and ethnic equality for this segment of Taiwan's population.