20110716 Aboriginal festival invites international groups

Aboriginal festival invites international groups

Staff Writer, with CNA

Dancers from Peru perform yesterday during an event organized by the Council of Indigenous Peoples to announce a series of Aboriginal festivals.
Photo: CNA

The Council of Indigenous Peoples yesterday announced the schedule for an upcoming festival that will feature songs and dance from Aboriginal cultures in Taiwan and more than 10 other countries.

As part of the Republic of China’s centennial celebrations, the Global Indigenous Peoples Performing Arts Festival will include seven local groups. Twelve other groups will converge from around the world to perform.

Three major performances will take place between July 27 and Aug. 3 in Hualien County, Taipei City and Pingtung County.

At the press conference held to announce the festival, a dancer from Peru’s CIDAN Mi Peru wowed those in attendance with her moves when she danced in a colorful traditional woman warrior’s outfit. The group will present traditional rituals from Peru’s coastal, highland and jungle areas.

The troupes that were invited to perform at the festival come from as far as Chile, Gambia, Niger and New Zealand, the Council of Indigenous Peoples said.

“We all know Taiwan’s Aborigines are definitely part of a family with people in the South Pacific,” Council of Indigenous Peoples Minister Sun Ta-chuan (孫大川) said.

Sun said Aboriginal people around the world were connected by a similarly “miserable experience” during periods of colonization.

“These people, however, have not given up the essence of their own cultures, so we invited them here,” Sun said.

An official from Taiwan’s Puyuma tribe said he hoped the audience would appreciate not only the performances at the festival, but also the feeling of experiencing their heritage.

To deepen the visitors’ understanding of local Aboriginal culture, tours to three Aboriginal communities in Hualien and Pingtung will be offered.

Sun said it was not common for a large event such as this festival to have interaction between the participants and local communities. Trips to the communities will include visits to traditional Aboriginal arts industry and cultural centers.