Xiang Si Liao Village

It’s hard to imagine a group of elderly grandpas and grandmas, who have worked as farmers all their lives, in their later years picking up the banners to march in protest, but that’s exactly what is happening in the simple Xiang Si Liao Village of Erlin Township, ZhangHua County.  They are vehemently protesting against the proposed development of a science park in their village.  The government proposes to expropriate agricultural land and homes that have been in the hands of local residents for many generations.   The move will give many elderly local residents no alternative but to move away from their hometowns.  Local residents have clearly said that if something like an airport was being built for the peoples’ benefit they would of course have no objections. However why is it necessary to tear down their homes? Are the factories being built simply to put money in the pockets of businessmen? Central Taiwan Science Park businesses and ZhangHua County government have refused to discuss the situation with local residents, leaving them extremely disappointed, and with no other choice but to take the fight up by themselves.

Xiang Si Liao Village (by weanmani, NanTou County citizen journalist).

http://www.peopo.org/portal.php?op=viewPost&articleId=54025
 

(以下為中文對照)

相 思寮( by南投公民記者weamani)

   
彰化縣二林鄉相思寮是一個純樸的小農村，難以想像當地務農一輩子的阿公阿 嬤，在晚年還要拿起抗議布條，聲嘶力竭抗議著中部科學園區的設立。中科設立將使得相思寮的農地、農舍被徵收，世代長居相思寮的農民將被迫遷離。居民吶喊， 若是要蓋機場等公共建設，大家都沒話說；但為什麼要拆他們的房子，給廠商蓋工廠賺錢？中科廠商與彰化縣政府互推皮球，居民心寒，只能靠自力救濟。

Note:
From mid April 2010, PTS’s citizen news platform PeoPo will carefully select three topical stories from each week’s news and translate them into English. This will extend the range of the service further, allowing an even greater number of concerned citizens to keep up to date with all the breaking news, the whole length of Taiwan.
  
備註：
公共電視PeoPo公民新聞平台，為擴大服務範圍，將自2010年4月中旬開始，每周精選三則公民報導翻譯成英文摘要，讓更多關心公民新聞的朋友，可以透 過PeoPo平台瞭解台灣在地大小事。