Taiwan
The officially recognized indigenous population of Taiwan numbers 484,174 people (2007), or 2.1% of the total population. Thirteen indigenous peoples are officially recognized. In addition, there are at least nine Ping-Pu (“plains or lowland”) indigenous peoples who are denied official recognition. Most of Taiwan’s indigenous peoples live in the central mountains, on the east coast and in the south.
The main challenges facing indigenous peoples in Taiwan continue to be rapidly disappearing cultures and languages, low social status and very little political or economic influence. A number of national laws protect their rights, including the Constitutional Amendments (2005) on indigenous representation in the Legislative Assembly, protection of language and culture, and political participation, the Indigenous Peoples’ Basic Act (2005), the Education Act for Indigenous Peoples (2004), the Status Act for Indigenous Peoples (2001), the Regulations Regarding Recognition of Indigenous Peoples (2002) and the Name Act, which allows indigenous peoples to register their original names in Chinese characters and to annotate them in Romanized script (2003). Unfortunately, serious discrepancies and contradictions in the legislation, coupled with only partial implementation of laws guaranteeing the rights of indigenous peoples, have stymied progress towards self-governance.
International Work Group for Indigenous Affairs, The Indigenous World 2011
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