TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan officially recognized the Siraya people as the nation’s 17th Indigenous group on Thursday, marking the culmination of more than three decades of advocacy for legal recognition.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) attended a ceremony commemorating the designation, calling it a historic milestone in Taiwan’s pursuit of multicultural values and historical justice. Speaking on behalf of the Cabinet, Cho said the recognition honored the Siraya people’s decades-long struggle to restore their identity, per UDN.
“The journey has been extremely difficult,” Cho said, noting that the Siraya were previously classified as part of Taiwan’s Pingpu Indigenous peoples. The Siraya launched a cultural revival and name rectification movement in 1990.
Generations of community leaders, elders, and young people have campaigned for official recognition for more than 30 years. Cho paid tribute to those who had dedicated themselves to the cause, saying their persistence made Thursday’s recognition possible, per UDN.
The Siraya people won a landmark Constitutional Court ruling in 2022 affirming their status as Indigenous. The legislature later drafted the Pingpu Indigenous Peoples Identity Act, which passed its third reading in October 2025.
The act established the legal framework for recognizing the Siraya as an Indigenous group. The Cabinet subsequently approved the designation, paving the way for the Siraya’s formal recognition.
