Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Siraya ruling step in right direction

The Liberty Times Editorial

The Constitutional Court has ruled that parts of the Status Act for Indigenous Peoples (原住民身分法) are unconstitutional. According to the ruling, the act has failed to protect the right to personal identity and conserve indigenous cultures; hence, it must be amended within the next three years or a special law must be stipulated.

While the ruling has not solved the recognition and rights issue of the Siraya indigenous community, it is a major achievement for indigenous peoples in name rectification and official recognition.

Memorial insensitive to history

Huang Hui-chun 黃惠君

The Jing-Mei White Terror Memorial Park recently announced that extension and repair work on the National Human Rights Museum (國家人權博物館) would end, while the entrance signs completed in 2006 by former Council for Cultural Affairs chairman Chiu Kun-liang (邱坤良), and the monument with victims’ names added during the term of former minister of culture Lung Ying-tai (龍應台), are to be removed. This is because the offices of the former Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office are to be restored. I was stunned to hear this.

Since when is a government bureau more valuable than entrance signs that symbolize the clash that resulted from the martial law system, and more important than a memorial inscribed with victims’ names?

Ann Kao is riding a wave of undue privilege

Chang Kuo-tsai 張國財

A private corporation or institution has the right to grant employees special paid leave to study for a doctoral degree. People might look on in envy, but they have no say in the matter.

However, people are entitled to say a thing or two if the same scenario takes place at a government institution, as it concerns taxpayers’ money.

Legislator Ann Kao (高虹安), the Taiwan People’s Party’s (TPP) candidate for Hsinchu mayor, has been trying to justify her “privilege” and explain why she was given special paid leave at the Institute for Information Industry, which allowed her to spend 574 days on “business trips” within six years to obtain a doctoral degree at the University of Cincinnati.

Ko Wen-je aiding tactics of the CCP

Pan Kuan 潘寬

China’s desire to annex Taiwan is an inarguable fact and Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲), who participated in the Sunflower movement in 2014, must be fully aware of this, too.

However, whenever people express opposition to Beijing’s “united front” work, Ko often challenges them by saying things like: “Why don’t you call to abolish the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement [ECFA] signed between Taiwan and China in 2010?”

By saying that, the mayor is essentially helping China to emotionally blackmail Taiwan.

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