I couldn't see any future for aboriginal people

The languages were on the brink of disappearing

All the rites and ceremonies had been abandoned or changed in form

The methods of Aboriginal industry had changed inherently

The authority of the tribe, became that of the village then the township, it became caught up in bureaucracy

The way we cultivated authority in the tribe, or, to put it another way, the tribal discipline,

The systems of authority all fell apart

We couldn't see any future

So in my early writings I said that aboriginal peoples were an ethnic group in the dusk of life

Hanging on by the skin of its teeth

It was a very real feeling

I'm not even talking about the next generation, Even my generation had withered away to nothing

We hadn't yet envisioned a stop-Loss point

Luckily it was from the 1990s, due to the amendment of the constitution in Taiwan

There was a lot of change in Taiwan As a result of shifts in social power

So, when we talk about multiculturalism or multicultural values

Although they are still not very powerful concepts, and some people just use them simply as catchphrases,

There has actually been some relaxing of ideas

This was the process of the amendment of the constitution in the 1990s,

And the setting up of the Council of Indigenous Peoples,

Then under the support of the constitution there was an administrative body,

Which unites those things which relate to indigenous affairs

I think we can more or less envision a stop-loss point now

This is an important responsibility for our generation, those of us in our fifties and sixties

Because we once had experience of tribal life, even if just for a short time

We can speak to the younger generation in our mother tongue

We have experience of growing up in a tribal setting

We've attended sacraficial rites

Attending those rites are what's important, not hearing someone else's experience or watching footage

We all have a greater or lesser experience with tribal discipline

That the older generation are all so healthy and cheerful is really a blessing from God

In the short 20 years since 1990

We're a lot more visible, whether in aboriginal literature, or in legal and political institutions

Although its been a little lopsided, we're still there

Even in the revival of rituals, although there are some corruptions within it

Because the ritual is still there, and those who could sing the songs are still here,

So the thread is still there

Therefore our generation has an important mission

To leave these threads in tact

To what purpose you might ask? For the next generation

To give them a foundation for creative work, or in forming a new culture in the future

If you have no foundation, I always think

Like before when I was promoting aboriginal literature letting aboriginal authors be recognized amongst writing circles

And we did research into memories of tradition among aboriginal peoples, and then translated it

One might think that has nothing to do with today

But this is all preparation for the aborigines 50 years from now

The children of the aborigines of 50 years from now want to trace the steps of their ancestors

At least it won't be as hard for them as it was for us

Except for the advantage of the little experience we had

We had no written resources or records

So after joining the Council of Indigenous Peoples I set up the Council for Indigenous Documents

With an aim to look at Dutch and Spanish documents

Although they weren't written from our perspective

There are lots of details and clues in them

As well as Chinese literary sources that talk about aboriginal peoples, and writings in the Japanese Colonial Period

We'll exert ourselves to pass on these kinds of threads to young people

In regard to our young people, I don't really approve the way some people

Pronounce aboriginal culture to be set in stone with an unchanging nature

This simply isn't true

Nothing in the world is like that, that is only an ideology

Although sometimes we need ideologies

Although it may sound awful, the reality is that

Anything to do with identity is ideological

From an individual perspective, our egos are built on narcissism

We try to focus on the good stuff and avoid facing up to the true nature of the ego

I think society works in the same way

With this in mind, how do we find an ideological identity that fits with reality?

If a culture or a people has no way of resonating with the age in which it finds itself

It is nothing but a mummified corpse it lacks meaning

It must be able to find a propelling force within itself,

As well as having the threads of traditional experience within its grasp,

To allow it to dialogue with new experiences

Which in turn endows it with the ability to see and do things impossible in its traditional system

This is what we call the dialectic between tradition and modernity

We now have to form that dialectical relationship

In terms of expectation of the next generation I don't expect them to be fluent in the mother tongue

That's just like asking an African American to learn his ancestor's native tribal tongue

You don't have to know the language to attain their identity

Even if we're using Chinese language in confronting modernity

I know that the generation of my brother, or my mother or my grandfather

Had this kind of convoluted experience

This convoluted experience endows them with a unique perspective from which he sees things

Aboriginal Literature is written in Chinese but it is completely different ethnically Chinese writers

Just like American Indian Literature and African American Literature

Rituals won't die off, from a conservationist perspective

The problem is how to keep them active

Our first effort was to preserve them

As to keeping them active, that will depend on the willingness of the next generation

This 'next generation' refers not only to aboriginal people but Taiwanese people in general

Because they are part of Taiwan's cultural heritage

If we want a new form of Taiwanese culture and even of Taiwanese language

To differentiate us from Mainland China

The elements are all there already

The question is whether or not you want them

The next generation have to put in an effort, including those of Chinese ethnic origins

And treasure this piece of our cultural heritage

I'm not to keen on forwarding the idea of a natural characteristic

Or go too far in terms of the human right's angle that would ignore certain realities

However, when we discover a human rights's issue

We have to get rid of it

Which gives the next generation freedom, freedom to choose

Someone might be born on Taiwan, born into the Puyuma tribe

He has a collective sense of belonging culturally to the tribe

But that sense of belonging is only a part of their life, or their being

The other part is the individual realizing themselves, and their harnessing their creative power

This is a balance that needs to be sought out for the younger generation

This was clear to me even before I became the Minister of the Council of Indigenous Peoples

We have to prepare them for this in my opinion