On April 17, Taiwan’s National Culture and Arts Foundation revoked the National Award for Arts previously bestowed on Indigenous artist Sakuliu Pavavaljung in 2018 and ordered him to return the NTD 1 million (USD 32,000) prize, following his conviction on sexual assault charges. Established in 1997, the government-administered award is one of Taiwan’s most prestigious honors for individual practitioners across disciplines. Its 20th edition, announced in 2017 and presented in 2018, recognized seven artists, including Pavavaljung in the visual art category for his multidisciplinary practices rooted in Paiwan culture.
The revocation follows a Supreme Court ruling on April 1, 2026, which upheld a sentence of four years and six months in prison for forcible sexual intercourse. The case stems from a February 2021 incident involving a female student. Allegations gained wider attention in December that year after artist Kuo Yu Ping disclosed the case on social media, prompting additional victims to come forward.
Pavavaljung denied the allegations, but his appeals against the Pingtung District Court’s first- and second-instance rulings were rejected.In 2022, the accusations resulted in the cancellation of Pavavaljung’s planned exhibition representing Taiwan at the 59th Venice Biennale, which was replaced by “Impossible Dreams,” a collateral event tracing the history of the region’s participation in Venice. The case marks the first instance in which a national honor has been withdrawn following the implementation of “MeToo” disqualification provisions in 2023. At the time of publication, Pavavaljung’s name had been removed from the award’s website. Yuqian Fan is an editorial assistant at ArtAsiaPacific.