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進入《TAIPEI TIMES 焦點》 ‘Lion’ filmmaker says sorry to Sediq
Two actors from the film Lion Dancing 2 pose for a photograph in an undated picture. Photo provided by Good Day Films
Following criticism from Aboriginal rights activists, comedian Peng Chia-chia （澎恰恰） formally apologized over a movie trailer accused of being derogatory toward the Sediq people and promised to axe a controversial section from the film.
Although Peng apologized last month on Facebook, a series of seemingly belligerent remarks toward netizens stoked renewed anger this month, leading critics to question his sincerity.
On Thursday, Peng offered a “wholehearted apology” to the Sediq people through reporters, saying that the trailer was a product of negligence instead of malice — in stark contrast with his invitation for an “open debate” with his detractors earlier this month.
“[Discrimination] was an aspect that we failed to pay attention to; that is something we neglected,” Peng said. “I really did not know that the Sediq people would care so deeply about this issue.”
The trailer of Peng’s upcoming film — Lion Dancing 2 （鐵獅玉玲瓏2） — features characters dressed in traditional Sediq clothing while speaking and singing gibberish — in an apparent attempt to parody the 2011 epic Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale — which was filmed mostly in the Sediq and Japanese languages.
Critics say the trailer crossed the line by joking about Mona Rudao, the Sediq leader at the heart of the Wushe Incident （霧社事件） in 1930 during Japanese colonial rule when more than 1,000 Sediq and hundreds of Japanese lost their lives.
As Lion Dancing 2 features many scenes that parody six recent popular Taiwanese movies, Peng said the segment parodying Seediq Bale would be removed to respect the wishes of the Sediq community.
In an interview with Taiwan Indigenous Television （TITV） yesterday, Sediq National Congress convener and former legislator Walis Balin said Peng’s apology was “somewhat acceptable.”
The group said that the incident only revealed “the tip of the iceberg” on discriminatory attitudes toward Aborigines, adding that they intended to appeal for the establishment of an anti-discriminatory law at the Executive Yuan on Feb. 2.
The proposed law would be drafted in accordance with the spirit of respect for multiculturalism as written in the Constitution, group member Awi Nokan told the Taipei Times, adding that the Peng incident served only as a catalyst for reform.
“We would have carried on with our legislative efforts regardless of whether he apologized,” Awi said. “Without legislation, incidents like these are bound to happen endlessly in Taiwanese society.”（Additional reporting by Tzou Nien-tsu）
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
