The Change in Ethnic Minority Affairs Policy in Taiwan and

Lang Weiwei

（Southwest Nationalities Research Academy， Southwest University

for Nationalities，Chengdu，610041，Sichuan，China）

JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGY， VOL. 7， NO.2， 39-42， 2016 （CN51-1731/C， in Chinese）

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1674-9391.2016.02.05

Abstract：

Multiple ethnic minorities are distributed across Chinas Taiwan. After the “Nationalist Government” retreated from the mainland， the ethnic affairs policy of Taiwan experienced a change.This article provides a brief introduction to the evolution of the ethnic affairs policy in Taiwan.

After the government of the Republic of China retreated from the mainland in 1949， Taiwan “authorities” kept the administrative structure of the “Committee for Mongolians and Tibetans” under the “Executive Branch”. The representatives of different frontier ethnic groups， such as Mongolian， Tibetan， Manchu， Hui， Uygur， and Kazak， were still included in the “National Assembly” and “legislature” of Taiwan “authorities”， and by so doing reflected the existence of these ethnic groups. However， the original ethnic minorities in the Taiwan Island still kept their earlier， complex of names. For instances， they were called the “gaoshanzu”（high mountain ethnic groups） ，“shandi shanbao”（mountain fellows in mountainous area）， “pingdi shanbao”（mountain fellows in the plains）， “xian zhumin”（early residents）， “tuzhu zu”（aborigines）， or they were called by their original names directly.

Since the 1970s and 1980s， the call to fight for the rights of minorities （including ethnic minorities） was growing throughout the world. The indigenous peoples of Taiwan， i.e. the ethnic minorities， started to seek their own rights， and around 520，000 indigenous peoples expressed their demands in various ways. The academic circles and representatives of ethnic minorities in Taiwan also proposed to make some revisions in the “Constitution” concerning ethnic regulations. These revisions involved the issue of positioning the names of the ethnic groups. Taiwan scholars had different suggestions on this issue， including using the original ethnic names， or using “yuanzhu min”（indigenous peoples）， etc.

The ethnic affairs policy makers in Taiwan at last chose to keep up with the trend of the times， and established an institute whose function was to safeguard “the fourth world”， i.e. the rights of indigenous peoples. In 1996， the Taiwan “legislature” approved the xingzhengyuan yuanzhumin weiyuanhui zuzhi tiaoli （Regulations of the Committee for Indigenous Peoples under the “Executive Branch”， and the xingzhengyuan yuanzhumin weiyuanhui （ Committee for Indigenous Peoples under the “Executive Branch”） was formed formally in December of that year. Later， the name was changed to xingzhengyuan yuanzhu minzu weiyuanhui（Committee for Indigenous Ethnic Groups under the “Executive Branch” ）. The responsibility of the Committee for Indigenous Ethnic Groups included the task of recognizing aboriginal identity and indigenous peoples. Specifically， this meant that once the aboriginal people proposed that they belonged to a separate indigenous people， the “council” would organize experts to confirm this identify. Of course， the results had to be reported to the committee， and the final approval rights belonged to Taiwans “Executive Branch”. The mainland normally called the indigenous ethnic minorities of Taiwan gaoshanzu （high mountain ethnic groups）. However， academic circles have divided the gaoshanzu into nine branches. And the structure of identification made by mainland academic circles differs somewhat from the new situation of the ethnic minorities in Taiwan. At present， 14 ethnic minority groups have been identified in Taiwan by the “Committee for Indigenous Ethnic Peoples under Taiwans ‘Executive Branch”.

Concerning the affairs of the Indigenous Ethnic Peoples in Taiwan， higher education is of special concern because it is regarded as the key for the sustainable development of the ethnic people. After 1949， Taiwan “authorities” set up a “Frontier Education Division” under the “Education Ministry”. The Mountain Fellows Education Committee was established in 1988， and its name was changed to the Indigenous Peoples Education Committee in 1994. In the same year， A Five-Year Plan Outline of the Development and Promotion of Indigenous Peoples Education was set up， and it included a plan for building institutes for nationalities or colleges of ethnic relations. In 1996， the Taiwan “Education Ministry” organized a “‘NationalConference for Indigenous Peoples Education”， and continued to discuss specific ways for the implementation of higher education for the indigenous peoples. In the late 1990s， the issue of opening higher education to indigenous ethnic peoples produced heated discussion in Taiwan. Generally speaking， most people supported building institutes for nationalities. However， there were two different ideas about how to do this： one suggestion was to build separate schools， while the other suggested building a college for nationalities within a comprehensive university. Now， Taiwan chooses the latter one， i.e. building colleges for nationalities within a comprehensive university. This was not only suitable for the reality of ethnic distribution in the Island of Taiwan， but， it also avoided wasting resources.

In summary， over time， the objectives of ethnic affairs policy in Taiwan has changed. The affairs of indigenous peoples has been put on the agenda. Only by depending on an orderly management by a relevant institute， can the ethnic affairs be managed effectively， and the rights of indigenous people be safeguarded. In communication between the mainland and Taiwan， a mutual exchange of experiences on the management of ethnic issues could be a venue for future exchange.

Key Words：Taiwan； ethnic affairs； administrative structure； change

References：

Xinhuawang. taiwan fangmian xiwang jiaqiang liangan shaoshu minzu shiwu jiaoliu （Taiwan Hopes to enhance the exchange of ethnic minority affairs between Taiwan and Mainland）.（2013-03-11）[2015-06-12].http：//news.xinhuanet.com/tw/2013-03/11/c_114985263.htm19：27：36.

Xiao Jinsong.taiwan sheli minzu xueyuan de kexingxing fenxi（Feasibility Analysis on the Establishment of Institutes for Nationalities in Taiwan）.In Newsletter of Ethnic Studies（Taiwan），1997（3）.

Zhao Jiawan.taiwan minzu yanjiu gaisu（A General Introduction to Ethnic Studies in Taiwan），In Journal of Guangdong University for Nationalities，1995（3）.

An Explorationof the Impact of Liu Wenhuis “Sanhua Policy” and

its Influence on Education in the Yi Area

Ma Linying

（Southwest Nationalities Research Academy， Southwest University for

Nationalities，Chengdu，610041，Sichuan，China）

JOURNAL OF ETHNOLOGY， VOL. 7， NO.2， 43-48， 2016 （CN51-1731/C， in Chinese）

DOI：10.3969/j.issn.1674-9391.2016.02.06

Abstract：

When Liu Wenhui became the leader of the Xikang Provincial Construction Committee in 1935， he immediately formulated a major plan concerning the management of Xikang province. His“Sanhua Policy” or “three-transformation policy”（dehua[to influence the Yi by virtue ]， tonghua [to assimilate] and jinhua[to evolve]）， was based on the situation of the frontier area in the Ning region. It reflected especially his political ideas and practical strategies for ruling the region by culture. However， with regard to the cause， process， content， and practice of “Sanhua Policy”， it can only be found in the publications of Ling Guangdian and Li Shian， two capable oficials who were involved with handling “Yi affairs” during the Republican Era of China. They published several articles in Xinkang News sponsored by the Ningshu Tunkeng Committee during the time 1942 to 1944. They published， for example， sanhua zhengce chanshu（An Explanation of the Sanhua Policy），sanhua zhengce mantan（A Brief Discussion on the Sanhua Policy），zaitan sanhua zhengce （Another Discussion on the Sanhua Policy）， and jiaoyu yu sanhua zhengce（Education and the Sanhua Policy）. Except for these articles， there has yet to be any academic research on this policy. Based on an examination of the literature， together with interviews with people who experienced or observed this period of history， this article presents the background and specific content of the “Sanhua Policy”， as well as looks at its influence on education in Liangshan. The purpose is to understand the reality regarding the fact that the government implemented military means to suppress the Yi in Liangshan， and the lack of ethnic policy during the Republican Era of China， and through this to provide some reflection on Liu Wenhuis ethnic policy regarding the Yi when he managed the Ning region. Some of his experience with training ethnic talents and cadres can be still be absorbed in current work with ethnic people.

I.The Background of the“Sanhua Policy”

Before the implementation of the“Sanhua Policy”， Liu Wenhuis ideas about “manageing Yi affairs” was still based on the ningshu zhengge zhiyi fangan ji shishi buzou（The Formula and Implementation Procedure for the Management of the Yi in the Whole Region of Ning） which was implemented on July 1st1937， and which advocated “eliminating the Yi， and preventing future troubles； and assimilating the Yi and letting them support us”. However， the implementation procedure depended on the use of force first， and then promoting virtue”. The policy asserted that “the Yi are afraid of force， and have no virtuous character”. The way to “manage Yi affairs” followed the traditional strategy of “conquering and suppressing by force”， and， accordingly， he launched many military attacks to suppress the Yi villagers. However， after he experienced two successful attacks on the Yi of Sichuan and four failed attacks on the Yi in Xikang region， he gradually started to think about his gains and losses， and asserted that it was the time that the attitudes regarding the Yi “should not depend on the force， but on the concept of virtuous character”. So， he transformed the work of “Yi affairs” from “suppression” to “pacification”. Moreover， due to the influence of Li Zongrens “sanzi policy” or “three-self policy” （self-management， self-protection and self-sufficiency） in Guangxi province， he proposed the idea of the “Sanhua Policy” in 1941， then， gradually practiced and perfected it.

II. The Specific Content ofthe “Sanhua Policy”

During the process of implementing the “Sanhua Policy” in the Yi area of the Ning region， its specific content included the goal of “Sanhua” （the three-transformations） and “liubu” （six actions which should not be taken）.

Firstly， “Sanhua” referred to “dehua （to influence the Yi by virtue）， tonghua （ to assimilate them） and jinhua （to evoluve）”. Among these “dehua” was meant to change the old concept which considered that “the Yi should be controlled by force because they have no virtuous character”. Moreover， it encouraged the government to understand fully the reason why the Yi often killed the Han and robbed them of their goods— it was because the rulers in different periods of history always controlled the Yi by force and did not try any other methods when managing the Yi. Therefore， the Yi regarded killing the Han as normal. Hence， “dehua” was a way in which the government tried to influence the Yi through virtue， and to make them aware that killing and robbing was not a virtuous action， revenge was illegal， and guided them to solve their conflicts in the court. In this way， the government thus， tried to improve the ethnic relations between the Yi and Han， and handle the problems of “Yi affairs” in the Ning region. “Assimilation” was meant to change the Yis language， script， and customs based on the principle of virtue. After the Yi had been assimilated according to the criterion of the Han， there would be no distinctions between the Yi and Han， Even though there were still some disputes， it would be easy to solve them because they were not ethnic problems. “Evolution” meant that since the Yi and Han were already the same， and the Yi had already become a new member of the Chinese nation， in order to avoid negative influence of the Yi societys development on the whole development process of Chinese nation， it was necessary for the government to make series of plans for the Yi to adapt to social change and development. In this way， the development of the Yi would be the same as that of the Han. Secondly， “liubu” （the six actions which should not be taken） referred to “not accepting a surrender fee； not accepting “first-meeting-gifts”； not using weapons casually； not making enemies； keeping equality between the Yi and Han； and maintaining equality between the Black Yi and White Yi”. Among these six items， “not accepting a surrender fee； not accepting first-meeting-gifts； and not using weapons casually” mainly targeted the measures taken by rulers in different periods of history when they ruled the Yi. The purpose of “not making enemies” was to avoid the fights between the different family clans of the Yi， and encouraged Yi society to improve the relationships among their social members. “Keeping equality between the Yi and Han” targeted the way former rulers managed the Yi by “conquering them by force first， and influencing them by virtuous character second”. “ Maintaining equality between the Black and White Yi” targeted the existence of hierarchy in the Yi society， and encouraged the Yi to eliminate the hierarchy which was based on the blood lines.

In the view of Liu Wenhui， the “Sanhua Policy” was not only useful for the Yi in the Ning region， but other regions as well. He emphasized that this policy “cannot only be implemented in this place alone， but also is workable in other places”. Therefore， during his time of rule， the “Sanhua Policy” was more or less practiced in all the regions of Ya， Kang and Ning ， and its significance was noticed especially in the field of education.

III. Analysis of the Influence of the “Sanhua Policy” on Ethnic Education

Actually，when Liu Wenhua became the president of the Xikang Provincial Government and was developing the “Sanhua Policy” in 1939， he started to open schools “to influence the Yi by virtue”， and practice his management strategy concerning the frontier people and military politics. For instance， he held “county magistrates training courses”， “heads of township training courses” and “heads of security training classs” for administrators on different levels. In addition， beginning in 1940， he opened various training courses for military officers on different levels in order to promote the idea of national government. During that period， many elites of the Yi， including Ling Guangdian， a tusi （native official） of the Yi， and Wang Jimin， a White Yi， attended the “security officials training classes”. Liu Wenhui also had the chance to come into contact with， and understand the situation of the Yi closely through these training courses. He then established a “Frontier People Training Institute” under the Xichang Tunkeng Committee. Since 1941， his most trusted person—Ling Guangdian—was appointed as the educational director of the institute， and then Li Shian， a White Yi who was also trusted by him， was appointed as the educational director.

When Liu Wenhui was managing the Ning region， his main idea was to promote Yi affairs through modern education， and the specific educational idea was to implement the “Sanhua Policy”， including dehua， tonghua and jinhua. The year 1945 was a year when Liu Wenhuis implementation of the “Sanhua Policy” through education in the Ning region lept forward. Three modern schools and three social education sites gradually became pilots. First， bianmin shiyan xuexiao （the Experimental School for Frontier People） was established in the urban area of Xichang， and Liu Wenhui himself was the president of the school. Later， Liu Yuanxuan， his nephew， was appointed as the school president. Because the purpose of establishing the school was to assimilate the Yi， except for a few Tibetan students， most of the students were children of the Yi. Later， based upon the former schools facilities and teachers， he established shengli dier bianjiang shifanxiao （the Second Provincial Frontier Normal School， ） and Liu Yuanxuan was appointed as the president of the school. In addition to the courses generally given in the normal school， it also offered courses which were useful to the Yi，including Yi language and literature， frontier knowledge， simple knowledge of medicinal plants， livestock， forestry， horticulture， craft and production， a brief introduction to weaving， construction， agricultural products production， and marketing， etc. In addition， 30 primary schools were successively opened for the frontier people in the Yi area of the Ning region. All these schools trained numerous Yi talented people who could speak Chinese and write Chinese characters， for example， Wang Zhengcai， Hong Jichuan，Ma Tongyu， and Pan Wenming. They all became important assistants and were the backbone of the Chinese Communist Party when it conducted ethnic work in the Yi area in the early years of the new China. Moreover， the Frontier Peoples Training Institute of Xichang was transformed into the Frontier Peoples Living Guidance Site. The new institute not only kept its original function of providing temporary accommodation for the Yi who came from distant places to Xichang for business， but it also became a government institute for the Yi， especially the heads of the Black Yi， to learn and accept the governments ideas.

IV. Conclusion

During the Republican Era of China， although the starting point of Liu Wenhuis “Sanhua Policy” was not for the purpose of respecting the wishes of the ethnic minorities，at least it started to accept the idea that “the Yi also can have a virtuous character”， and that the “assimilation of the Yi could also be helpful for us”. Moreover， it also， to a certain degree， prevented the governments making the Yi surrender by force. For instance， the four military actions established for the purpose of forcing the surrender of the Yi in Xikang province differed from the situation in the past when policy advocated to kill all， burn everything， and rob them all. Instead， it allowed the Yi to release， pay ransom， or become a hostage， and be educated. Successively， the “Yi Hostage Institute” was transformed into a modern education model—to force those hostages from the upper class Black Yi and some volunteers from the White Yi from Xichang and Mianning， to learn the ritual and culture of the Han in school.

Key Words：Republican Era of China； Sanhua Policy； exploration on the influence

References：

Ma Linying. baisui rensheng chuankangshi： yizu laoren li shian kousu jilu （Old Yi People Li Shians Oral Record），Beijing：minzu chubanshe，2014.