Indigenous Taiwanese to paddle to the Philippines reconnecting long-lost route

A group of indigenous Taiwanese left on Monday to paddle to the Philippines on a hand-built wooden canoe across the Bashi Channel, reviving a maritime route dormant for hundreds of years and re-establishing a lost cultural connection.



The Tao people of Taiwan's Orchid Island, sitting in the Pacific Ocean some 50 nautical miles off the southeastern county of Taitung, are closely related to the indigenous people of the Batanes Islands to the north of Luzon, the main island of the Philippines.



The 20-seat canoe, named Ovayan or "Golden Friendship," was crafted by builders from six communities on Orchid Island as part of a government-backed project, and the trip will take around 24 hours with 60 people taking turns to row, rotating in and out of support ships.



Maraos, chairperson of Taiwan's Indigenous Peoples Cultural Foundation and himself an Orchid Island Tao, said the goal was to re-connect the long-forgotten sea route.



"So with this project, we are re-establishing the sea route between Orchid Island and Batanes, allowing our cultures and languages to continue being passed on," said Maraos.