Saving Siraya: Saving Siraya Corrections

What is this all about?!

Saving Siraya is a blog dedicated to the protection of a Taiwanese indigenous tribe that is not officially recognized by the government and therefore denied of basic human rights.

Due to the demands of Zhong Xing University and the Taiwanese national government, starting JUNE 29th, 2011 Siraya homes will be demolished and families already suffering from poverty will become homeless. After demolition the university intends to use the land for its agricultural department.

Approximately 20 Siraya families will be affected, some of which have lived on this ancestral land for up to 150 years.

See "Saving Siraya" for a detailed post on the Siraya's situation.

** UPDATE: A recent meeting between Zhong Xin University representatives, the Tainan City mayor, city councillors, and Siraya representatives has resulted in an agreement. The city government has been granted three months to prepare documents proving that Siraya settlements predate 1920. These documents will be signed by the mayor and will thereby protect ancestral land from further disruption. The university agrees to cooperate once these documents have been approved by the Tainan City mayor! Court hearings and demolitions have been postponed three months accordingly.

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Saving Siraya Corrections

It has been brought to my attention that there were several mistakes in my original post titled "Saving Siraya." I apologize for the inaccuracies.

1. Tsiong Shing University--> Zhong Xing University
2. The Taiwanese government did not transfer the land in 1920 considering the Japanese were in power at that time
3. There was some confusion caused by my imprecise wording, but the Siraya are currently in possession of the land despite not having registered ownership
4. There are 20 houses that will suffer serious damage (1/2 or more of the structure will be destroyed) due to demolition, yet there are a variety of other houses that are only being partially torn down

Hope this helps! I am dedicated to providing you with the most accurate and updated information I can find. I will continue to make change to the blog as events unfold.