Green Island, Taiwan
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The Sleeping Beauty Skerry in Green Island, Taiwan |
Green Island (;
POJ: Le̍k-tó) is a small
volcanic island in the
Pacific Ocean, about 33km (20.5 miles) off the eastern coast of
Taiwan. The island is 15.092 km² at high tide and 17.329
2 at low tide. Administratively, Green Island is
Lyudao Siang (ch: 綠島鄉), a
township of Taitung County and one of the county's two offshore areas (the other is
Orchid Island). Green Island is the ROC's fourth largest island. It is accessible by
airplane in eight to 12 minutes from
Taitung City. There are also
ferries capable of carrying over 250 passengers.
The island is primarily noted as the place of past and current
prisons and
penal colonies. Green Island first served as an isolated spot and place of
exile for
political prisoners during the
martial law period of
Taiwanese history during
Kuomintang single-party rule (especially during the
White Terror). After their release, many of the prisoners jailed between the late
1940s and the late
1980s went on to establish the
Democratic Progressive Party, most notably
Shih Ming-teh.
Author
Bo Bang was also a prisoner here.
The place where most of the political prisoners were held was the
Green Island Lodge (Lǜ Dǎo Shānzhuāng), where conditions were horrible.
Oasis Village was the main penal colony. The prison was later closed, but its interior is not open to the public. There is a current movement to restore the prison and preserve it as a
museum.
The
Green Island Prison (Lǜ Jiānyú) is also on the island and now houses some prisoners that are perceived to be amongst Taiwan's most dangerous criminals and gangsters. However, this has changed in recent years.
The island is the natural habitat for deer, goats,
chameleons, giant bats, and
coconut crabs as well as indigenous and migratory birds.
In 1995, less than half of the registered 2,634 residents of the island actually reside on the island. The population is dwindling due to difficulty to find jobs on the island. There are two preschools, one kindergarten, two elementary schools, and one middle school on the island. To pursue any education at or higher than the level of senior high school, the islanders must move to the main island of Taiwan. Public service centres include one seniors' home, one library, and one community centre.
It once belonged to the
Ami Taiwanese aborigines, under the name
Sanasai. It was called "Fire-Burned Island (火'島 Hu'shāo Dǎo; or, 火'嶼 Huoshao Yu) before renamed to
Green Island in August 1, 1949 by Huang Shih-hung (黃式鴻), the magistrate of Taitung at the time, who thought that the former name was unrefined.
The villages and the settlements (聚落) they administer are:
* Zhongliao Village (中寮村)
** Zhongliao
* Nanliao Village (南寮村)
** Nanliao (南寮)
** Yugang (漁港)
* Gongguan Village (公館村)
** Gongguan (公館)
** Chakou (柴口)
** Liumagou (流麻溝)
** Dahu (大湖)
** Zuoping (左坪)
The following abandoned aboriginal tribal settlements also belong to Gongguan Village:
* Youzihu (柚子湖)
* Nanzihu (楠子湖)
* Haicanping (海參坪)
* Dabaisha (大白沙)
*
Orchid Island - the other offshore township of Taitung County
*
List of islands of the Republic of China*
Green Island Serenade (Song)*
Tourism (Chinese)
*
Scuba Diving off Green Island (English)
