Focus Taiwan
Date: 11/04/2020 10:16 PM
By: Yeh Chen and Joseph Yeh

Taoyuan, Nov. 4 (CNA) An Italian priest who served for 46 years in indigenous communities in Taiwan died last week in his home country at the age of 85, the Taiwan embassy in the Vatican said Wednesday.

Father Alberto Papa passed away Oct. 31 in his hometown of Bari, and a funeral service was held for him on Nov. 3, the embassy said in a Facebook post.

The priest first came to Taiwan in 1963, when he was 27, and was based in the mountainous Fuxing District in Taoyuan, which is home to the indigenous Ataya tribe.

During his service in the area, which was formerly called Fuxing Township, he became proficient not only in Mandarin but also in the Atayal language.    [FULL  STORY]