Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei mayoral candidate Sean Lien’s (連勝文) failure to pay his respects to victims of the 228 Massacre while visiting the 228 Memorial Park yesterday has sparked fierce controversy.
Lien visited the park to pay his respects to historical figures that he said are considered to have made great contributions to the nation.
During his visit, he laid flowers at the bronze busts of Cheng Chen-kung (鄭成功), a Ming Dynasty loyalist also known as Koxinga; Liu Ming-chuan (劉銘傳), the governor of Taiwan during the Qing Dynasy; Chiu Feng-jia (丘逢甲), a patriotic poet who has been honored for his resistance against the Japanese military after the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki; and Lien Heng (連橫), a historian, author of A General History of Taiwan and Sean Lien’s great-grandfather.
Photo: CNA
Sean Lien said his visit was prompted by his meeting earlier this week with former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Shih Ming-te (施明德) — who later quit the party and led the “red shirt” protests against then-president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) in 2008 — who raised the idea of building a shrine for those who had contributed significantly to the nation.
“We are supportive of Shih’s idea of having a place to honor and remember the contributions and deeds of people of diverse backgrounds, ethnic groups and places of origin, who have, at different times, done great things for Taiwan. I think Taipei could work in this direction so that Taiwanese know what their predecessors achieved,” Sean Lien said.
Yet his failure to visit the 228 Memorial Monument in the park, which commemorates the victims of a brutal crackdown launched by the then-KMT regime on Feb. 27, 1947, was interpreted by the local media as intentional.
Yesterday was the eve of Retrocession Day, declared by the previous KMT government to observe the end of Japanese colonial rule of Taiwan and its “return” to the Republic of China in 1945.
Sean Lien’s spokesperson, Chien Chen-yu (錢震宇), confirmed that the visit was purposely made on the eve of Retrocession Day “to pay respect to the four historical figures in the 228 Memorial Park and to thank them for their devotion to the land.”
“As for the 228 Memorial Monument, we will pay our respects another day,” he added.
Sean Lien told reporters that paying tribute to the 228 Memorial Monument was not on his campaign itinerary yesterday.
“[I] followed the planned itinerary. There was no arrangement made [for me to pay my respects to the 228 Memorial Monument today],” Sean Lien said.
Asked about the particularly long prayer he made at the bust of his great-grandfather Lien Heng, Sean Lien said he regretted that — while his camp has refrained from attacking their opponents’ families and ancestors — “the opposition camp has continued the tactic long practiced by the DPP, which is to harshly criticize my ancestors by distorting the facts, taking things out of context and using insulting words [against them].”
The reputation of Lien Heng, well known for his work on Taiwanese history, has been criticized over an opinion piece he wrote for Taiwan Nichinichi Shinpo (台灣日日新報), a daily newspaper published during the Japanese colonial era in 1930.
In the opinion piece, Lien Heng, who was said to have been paid by the Japanese colonial government to write the essay, encouraged the use of opium and called the practice “beneficial.”
Taiwanese literati were infuriated by the essay, resulting in Lien Heng’s ostracism and his relocation to China.
His son, Lien Chen-tung (連震東), returned to Taiwan in 1945 with the KMT regime and became one of the KMT officials responsible for the takeover of the government.
QUIET START: Nearly a week after applications opened, agencies did not announce or promote the program, nor did they explain how it differed from other visitor visas Taiwan has launched a six-month “digital nomad visitor visa” program for foreign nationals from its list of visa-exempt countries who meet financial eligibility criteria and provide proof of work contracts. To apply, foreign nationals must either provide proof that they have obtained a digital nomad visa issued by another country or demonstrate earnings based on age brackets, the Bureau of Consular Affairs said. Applicants aged 20 to 29 must show they earned an annual salary of at least US$20,000 or its equivalent in one of the past two years, while those aged 30 or older must provide proof they earned US$40,000 in
SERIOUS ALLEGATIONS: The suspects formed spy networks and paramilitary groups to kill government officials during a possible Chinese invasion, prosecutors said Prosecutors have indicted seven retired military officers, members of the Rehabilitation Alliance Party, for allegedly obtaining funds from China, and forming paramilitary groups and assassination squads in Taiwan to collaborate with Chinese troops in a possible war. The suspects contravened the National Security Act (國家安全法) by taking photos and drawing maps of key radar stations, missile installations and the American Institute in Taiwan’s headquarters in Taipei, prosecutors said. They allegedly prepared to collaborate with China during a possible invasion of Taiwan, prosecutors said. Retired military officer Chu Hung-i (屈宏義), 62, a Republic of China Army Academy graduate, went to China
AIR DEFENSE: The Norwegian missile system has proved highly effective in Ukraine in its war against Russia, and the US has recommended it for Taiwan, an expert said The Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS) Taiwan ordered from the US would be installed in strategically important positions in Taipei and New Taipei City to guard the region, the Ministry of National Defense said in statement yesterday. The air defense system would be deployed in Taipei’s Songshan District (松山) and New Taipei City’s Tamsui District (淡水), the ministry said, adding that the systems could be delivered as soon as the end of this year. The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency has previously said that three NASAMS would be sold to Taiwan. The weapons are part of the 17th US arms sale to
UNITY MESSAGE: Rather than focusing on what Trump said on the campaign trail about Taiwan, Taipei should be willing to engage with the US, Pompeo said Taiwan plays a key role in Washington’s model of deterrence against China, former US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said in a speech in Taipei yesterday. During US president-elect Donald Trump’s first term, “we had developed what we believe was a pretty effective model of deterrence against adversaries who wanted to undermine the set of rules and values that the people of Taiwan and the people of the US hold dear,” Pompeo said at a forum organized by the Formosa Republican Association. “Succeeding in continuing to build this model will not solely rest at the feet of president Trump and his team,
RSS