Kaohsiung The Highest Employment Rate of Taiwanese Aboriginal Residents 高雄原住民就業率 全國最高
The aboriginal resident dancing group performs the welcoming dance, the sorcerer reads the prayer and offers a sacrifice, asking the ancestors' souls to appear. The earth of the Holy Land and water of the Holy Ghost are scattered in this aboriginal residents' ceremony. Kaohsiung City Mayor Hsieh, who has been advocating for "Disadvantaged people first" for long time, breaks ground for the first Indigenous Theme Park in Southern Taiwan.
Kaohsiung Indigenous Theme park is located by the newly-renovated Cianjhen River. Mayor Hsieh has unfolded the idea of "Disadvantaged people first" during his administration, not only in hardware facilities, but also in aboriginal residents' livelihood and education. Safala Paiban, the chairman of Kaohsiung Indigenous Affairs Commission, announced the good news to his clansmen: according to the Executive Yuan, the aboriginal resident unemployment rate of 2003 in Kaohsiung is 4.9%, while the national average unemployment rate is 9.64%. This has resulted from Mayor Hsieh's policy: Kaohsiung Metro Rapid Transit System project has to employ at least 3% aboriginal laborers (who are also residents of Kaohsiung City). These policies lead the unemployment rate of aboriginal residents to be reduced dramatically from 8.02% of 2002 to 4.9% of 2003, which is even lower than the other populace unemployment rate.
Mayor Hsieh further declares that, in the near future, "the Free Trade Port Area" of Kaohsiung will take the lead to set up the regulation to employ 5% aboriginal residents in its project, and the employment rate of senior aboriginal females will also be promoted. As a result, the aboriginal residents' unemployment rate will be kept consistently low.
Mayor Hsieh regards Kaohsiung City as "the mother town of the Aborigine", as the window to connect with the nation and the world. Therefore, Kaohsiung is devoted to developing the tribal workshop, Kaohsiung Indigenous Community College, the elegant foothill bay country dwelling community and the south island language family original resident base. The metropolitan function of Kaohsiung City is to promote "the mother town of the Aborigine" by its products and culture to the whole of Taiwan and the entire world.
By positively expediting the first aboriginal theme park in Southern Taiwan, Mayor Hsieh hopes to change the stereotype of the Aborigines, absorbing the aboriginal their culture into the community. About two to three years ago, the aboriginal theme park was planned to be built in the Shiaogang district; however, due to lack of good transportation facilities, the theme park is being built on the base of service center of the aboriginal and the Wunsiaosan area, and is due to be finished by the end of this July.
原住民舞團表演迎賓舞，巫師唸祭禱文，呼請祖靈、敬酒獻祭品，撒出聖地之土、希望之子，倒聖靈之水、鳴放竹筒炮，在這場原住民儀式中，長期主張「弱勢優先」的高雄市長謝長廷為南台灣第一座原住民主題公園主持動土典禮。
高雄市原住民主題公園位於剛整治成功的前鎮河畔，謝市長任內展現弱勢優先的施政理念，不只展現在硬體設施，市長更重視原住民的生計與教育。高雄市原住民事務委員會主委台邦．撒沙勒特別向族人們宣布喜訊，行政院公佈九十二年台灣原住民失業率，全國平均失業率為9.64﹪，高雄市4.9﹪是全國最低者，這是因謝市長堅持高雄捷運工程必須雇用3﹪原住民勞工，且須設籍高雄市，這兩項政策讓高市原住民失業率從91年的8.02﹪，大幅降低至92年的4.9﹪，甚至低於一般民眾失業率。
謝市長更進一步宣示，近期將率先在高雄設立的「自由貿易港區」明文規定須晉用百分之五比例的原住民，並努力提升中高齡原住民婦女就業率，讓原住民失業率永遠維持最低。
謝市長認為高雄市應作為所有原住民的「原鄉」，成為與全國、全世界接軌的窗口，所以高雄市致力發展部落工場、海洋民族大學、娜麓灣國宅社區、南島語系原住民基地，將「原鄉」各種產品、文化行銷全台灣、全世界，這是高雄市的都會型功能。
積極催生南台灣第一座原住民主題公園，謝市長是希望藉以轉變一般人對原住民的刻板印象，將原住民文化融入社區。本來原住民主題公園早在兩、三年前就已著手規劃在小港區高坪特定區，但因地處偏遠，才改為現在的原住民服務中心及「文小三」用地闢建原住民主題公園，預定7月底完成。