The Nantou Mountain Hiking Self-Government Ordinance was originally supposed to be introduced before that of Taichung.

Nantou County is home to 41 peaks above 3,000 meters, attracting many hikers for mountaineering activities. While Taichung was the first to unveil a hiking self-governance ordinance, Nantou had actually planned to introduce one by the end of last year. Although progress has lagged, it is still expected to follow in Taichung’s footsteps.

Yesterday, the Taichung City Government’s municipal meeting passed the “Taichung City Hiking Activity Management Self-Government Ordinance,” a first in Taiwan, which will be submitted to the Taichung City Council for review. Since many hiking routes cross municipal boundaries, Taichung Mayor Lin Jialong also invited neighboring local governments—including Hualien, Yilan, Hsinchu, Miaoli, and Nantou—to jointly establish a self-governance ordinance.

Following the Zhang Boyi mountain tragedy, the victim’s family sued the Nantou County Fire Bureau, which was primarily responsible for the rescue operation. On May 27, 2015, the Taipei District Court ruled that the Nantou County Fire Bureau should pay over NT$2.66 million in compensation. The county government appealed, and on June 3 of the same year, Magistrate Lin Ming-tsung held a high-profile press conference to express strong support for the fire bureau and the rescue team at the time, while also vowing to “draft a Nantou County hiking management self-governance ordinance within six months.”

Now, a year has passed. Today, the Disaster Rescue Division of the Nantou County Fire Bureau, which is primarily responsible for drafting the ordinance, stated that the draft content of the Nantou County Hiking Management Self-Government Ordinance has been completed. It is largely similar to the Taichung version because during the meetings to draft the ordinance, both regions sent representatives to attend, ensuring unified regulations and penalties to accommodate the fact that some mountainous areas span both Taichung and Nantou.

The Disaster Rescue Division said that the county government held two public consultation meetings on February 19 and May 5, chaired by County Secretary-General Hong Rui-zhi, and attended by the Ministry of the Interior’s Construction and Planning Agency, the National Fire Agency, Taroko National Park Headquarters, Yushan National Park Headquarters, the Council of Agriculture, the Forestry Bureau’s Nantou Forest District Office, the Taichung City Government, and civilian rescue organizations.

The Disaster Rescue Division stated that the self-governance ordinance has now been submitted to the county government’s Legal Review Committee. Once approved, it will be submitted in sequence to the County Affairs Meeting and the County Council for review. Because the ordinance involves penalties, it must ultimately be submitted for central government approval.

In the past year, the more notable mountain rescue incidents in Nantou County include a university student who fell into a valley while climbing Yushan during the snowy season—official and civilian rescue teams spent five days recovering the body—and a teacher who went missing while hiking alone in the mountainous area of Dili Village, Xinyi Township. The rescue team spent nearly a month retrieving the body, which was lodged halfway up the mountain. There were also several other rescue cases that required significant manpower, resources, and helicopters. The introduction and implementation of an appropriate hiking management self-governance ordinance is urgently needed.

Rescue personnel involved in frontline operations pointed out that hiking activities often span multiple peaks and municipalities. If each city or county government establishes its own self-governance ordinance, disputes may arise. For example, the Taichung City Hiking Activity Management Self-Government Ordinance requires hikers to carry positioning devices and emergency communication equipment, with violators subject to fines. But if a hiker argues, “I was allowed entry from another county without being asked to carry these items—why should I be penalized when I enter Taichung?” unnecessary arguments could arise between hikers and law enforcement.

Therefore, both Nantou County and the Taichung City Government believe that if the central government takes the lead in integrating relevant legal frameworks and coordinating among agencies, establishing a unified national standard would be more effective in safeguarding the safety of hikers and rescue personnel. 1050607

(CNA)