Independance + Taiwan’s Indigenous tribes mostly still live in the mountains...
#Independence #War #Taiwan #Indigenous #Tribes #Freedom
“The only possibility for Taiwan to truly achieve independence from China’s grasp is, in theory, only to first allow the Indigenous tribes of Taiwan to establish an independent nation named ‘Formosa,’” said Chuan-ju Cheng, an associate professor of Indigenous studies at the Taipei University of Education, alluding to the name the Portuguese gave the island when they sailed past it.
After that, “the Han people of Taiwan could join the new state,” added Cheng, who is herself a member of the Truku nation in the Hualien mountains to the island’s east.
Most of Taiwan’s Indigenous tribes still live in those mountains, which make up 60 percent of the island’s topography. Neither Dutch, Portuguese nor Spanish sailors and merchants ever conquered these heights or established full control over its people. The same goes for imperial China, which never controlled much more than outposts by the western shores. Only Japanese conquerors at the dawn of the 20th century succeeded in annexing or acquiring all the native land.
Opinion / Source: By Alexander Görlach, March 31, 2024
