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The 'group relocation' policy imposed during the Japanese colonial period in Taiwan is arguably one of the most notorious policies to be imposed upon indigenes. As a result of this project, almost half of Taiwanese indigenes were resettled from the high mountain areas to the lowlands. Relocated populations needed to adjust themselves to new circumstances, and relocation became a traumatic memory for many. What is interesting is that relocating villages is not, historically, an uncommon occurrence for most Taiwanese indigenous groups. This suggests that 'relocating villages', in and of itself, might not be overly problematic for indigenous populations. Why then did the Japanese relocation policy come to be regarded as such a traumatic event? In this paper, I will present a sketch of how the Japanese relocation policy became regarded as such a traumatic event for many indigenous groups, and explore the reason the Thao people, living by Sun Moon Lake of central Taiwan, had a very different experience of relocation. Moreover, I also describe the relationship between the mapping project of Traditional Territories of Indigenous Peoples that began in 2002 and the collection of oral histories of indigenous relocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on the low-cost self-build housing solution designed by architect Ying Chun Hsieh for the Thao tribe in Taiwan. Simplification of the construction is considered to be one of the most important aspects of Hsieh's project as it allows people who are not skilled in construction to take part in the reconstruction effort. Moreover, Hsieh's construction method is said to allow the tribe members to save cost and rebuild a sense of a shared community through shared work.