Tsai Chung-han

Tsai Chung-han (Chinese: 蔡中涵; Amis: Safulo Kacaw Lalanges;^[1] born 1943) is a Taiwanese Amis politician. He was a member of the Legislative Yuan from 1987 to 2005.

Personal life[]

Tsai is of Amis descent.^[2][3] He earned a master's degree in international studies at Soochow University, followed by a doctorate in sociology at the University of Tokyo,^[4] and was one of 21 people of indigenous descent interviewed for the book The Story of their Lives: the Academic Path of Taiwan's Aboriginal Doctorate Holders, which stated that, from 1945 to 2004, there were 23 indigenous people to have earned a doctorate.^[5] He has taught with the Social Science Center at National Chengchi University, served as an associate professor at Tamkang University, a visiting professor at Peking University, and a lecturer at Ryutsu Keizai University.^[6]

Political career[]

Tsai was elected to the First Legislative Yuan in 1986 and 1990, as a representative of what became the Lowland Aborigine Constituency, under the Kuomintang banner. He remained affiliated with the Kuomintang during the second and third convocations of the Legislative Yuan.^[6][7] In 1987, he co-operated with the coverage report of Independence Evening Post to advocate the human rights concern for the remaining survivors of the Tuapse Incident in the General Assembly after the Taiwan democratic reform with the Martial Law lifted,^[8][9] and successfully achieved the amnesty decision making with the first Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui to release the civilian sailors free after 34 years in captivity.^[10][11] Tsai won reelection as a political independent in 1998,^[12] working with the  [zh]. In 2001, Tsai returned to the Legislative Yuan via the party list of the People First Party.^[4]

As a legislator, Tsai took a lead role in the review of indigenous welfare policies,^[13] and commented on biomedical research involving indigenous people.^[14] In 2004, Tsai took part in protests that occurred after vice president Annette Lu stated that the Taiwanese indigenous peoples were not the original inhabitants of Taiwan, including a hunger strike.^[15][16]

In 2004, Liu Wen-hsiung, Jaw Shaw-kong and Tsai accused Chen Shui-bian of sexually harassing Mireya Moscoso.^[17] Separately, Chen and Moscoso sued the trio of accusers.^[18][19] The Taipei District Court issued a decision on Chen's lawsuit against Liu, Jaw, and Tsai in January 2006, ruling that Jaw was not guilty, but that Liu and Tsai had to publish public apologies in major Chinese-language newspapers.^[20]

References[]