of its claims; and moreover that the relevant government organ should assert
the right to fact-check the proposal and to establish suitable mechanisms for
this purpose. It is necessary to expressly stipulate that public hearings must be
held for each referendum proposal, and that referendum proposers,
stakeholders (or their representatives) and other third parties can participate in
the hearings, in which all attendees should understand their rights and
obligations. The relevant government organ should be obligated to further
clarify the referendum proposals, and provide, or have a fair third party
provide, detailed evaluation and analysis reports on the benefits and effects
posed by any adopted proposals, with the hoped-for outcome that the
referendum process can win the trust of all sides.
The Advancement of Indigenous Peoples
4.
Point 27 of the Concluding Observations and Recommendations adopted by
the International Review Committee for the Review of the Second Report,
dated 20 January, 2017,
…recommends the effective enforcement of Taiwan’s Indigenous Peoples
Basic Law (IPBL) and the implementation of revised policies and
administrative measures undertaken by the Government in connection with
the 2013 Concluding Observations and Recommendations. In particular, the
Committee recommends that the on-going identification and recognition of
traditional lands and territories by the Council of Indigenous Peoples be
carried out in consultation with, and with the direct participation of,
indigenous peoples.
The Control Yuan was concerned about said issues and, therefore, specifically
conducted an investigation on the matter, and based on the findings,
recommended improvements to be made by the competent authority. The
findings provided upon the investigation are stated as follows, some of which
have been adopted by the competent authority, which is proactively working
on them.
5.
Self-governance and economic land rights, as well as the conservation and
preservation of their traditional culture, are at the core of the lives of
indigenous peoples and central to the protection of their interests and rights.
The Indigenous Peoples Basic Law expressly provides that it is necessary to
establish (enact) laws and regulations governing said issues, and requires that
various authorities should review the amended laws and regulations to assure
they adhere to the principles upheld by the Act. However, most of them clearly
still fail to do so. For example, there is still considerable delay in establishing
(enacting) or amending several laws and regulations critical to indigenous
peoples’ self-determination and lives, including the Indigenous Peoples’ SelfGovernment Act, Protective Regulation for Preserving Indigenous Cultural
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