Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Dozens of Aborigines representing various tribes throughout the country yesterday gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office to voice their anger at the Republic of China (ROC) government’s occupation of Aboriginal land as they performed a traditional ritual to drive away evil spirits.

“Let’s kick the ROC government out of here. Let’s kick the ROC government off the land that our ancestors passed down to us. Let’s drive away the evil spirits that come from this government,” an elder Amis shaman sang in a traditional Amis song, while waving a piece of banana leaf.

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) recently said he advocates the study of classic Chinese texts. With the presidential election just around the corner, this is a sensitive time and his announcement has caused much debate. However, the first traces of how the Ma administration uses politics to steer education and culture could be seen a long time ago.

The promotion of traditional Chinese culture is only for show and the real goal behind the administration’s move is to follow Beijing’s instructions to use education and culture to subtly influence the way people think in order to change Taiwanese perceptions of a national identity and weaken their feeling of having a unique ethnic identity — thereby paving the way for China’s eventual annexation of Taiwan.