A VICTORY FOR TAIWAN'S AGRICULTURE

For the past few decades, farmland preservation in Taiwan has constantly taken a backseat to industrial development, causing serious harms to the island's agriculture. But recently at Wan-bao of Miaoli, the government finally revoked an industrial development plan and decided to allow local farmers to keep their own land. And the long-awaited farmers' victory may signal a turning point for Taiwan's agricultural future.

The farmers of Wan Bao are finally able to keep over hundreds of hectares of their farmland instead of losing it to an industrial zoning.

Scholars pointed out that, those farmers didnt have to fight such a battle for top grade farming land should not be able to be converted into industrial use to begin with for the commissioners of the building

and construction Bureau of the Ministry of the Interior would need to review the process first,

and, if the Council of Agriculture, the department which supervise the farming lands, is not willing to give it a go, the converting process would not go through and the commissioners would respect the decision.

However, this time, the COA waited until Premier Wu Dehn yi gave specific instructions before making an effort to show its stand on the case.

Wu was involved mainly due to last years Da Pu farmland purchase case of MiaoLi County, where county magistrate even sent excavators into rice fields, which were about ready for harvest.

The move caused an overnight protest in front of the Presidential Office at Katagalan Blvd, leading to a granny to kill herself in protest.

Many civil groups believe that the case in Miaoli got the attention from the society that there are many unreasonable regulations to buy out farmlands as they pressure the government to protect and conserve top grade farmlands.

Farmers cried out and more people joined in on the effort to protect the farmers and the farmlands.

The Executive yuan made and order to protect the supply of food , specified farming lands are to be preserved, making it the first time in R.O.C. history that the government stopped industrial development for the agricultural sector.

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