A leading publishing company yesterday released two books covering the life and writing of Taiwan democracy pioneer Lei Chen (
"Lei's bravery and fortitude in his pursuit of freedom and a constitutional government had a strong influence on the development of Taiwan's democracy," President Chen Shui-bian (
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
"The [KMT] regime was routed by the DPP on May 20, 2000 and [Lei Chen's] ideal of a `free China' started to become a reality," Chen said. May 20, 2000 is the day Chen was inaugurated as president.
Chen praised Lei as "a fighter who dared to challenge authority and pursue democracy and human rights."
`Free China'
In 1960, Lei, a liberal thinker who devoted his life to democratic reform and human rights, was accused of sedition and collaborating with communists and sentenced to 10 years in prison for publishing Free China (自由中國), a biweekly advocating liberalism that was sharply critical of the KMT's autocratic form of leadership.
He launched the China Democratic Party (
The two books released yesterday were Memoirs On The Creation Of A New Party (
Chen was the first person to raise concerns about the improper treatment of Lei Chen and he helped clear the activist's name, Lei Chen's daughter Lei Mei-lin (
Top-level recognition
"This is the first time that Taiwan's highest ranking government official has apologized to us," Lei Mei-lin said in tears.
Many friends, acquaintances and associates of Lei Chen attended the conference yesterday. Former legislative speaker Liang Su-jung (
"Lei Chen was a great man -- a forerunner of the democratic movement. He was a liberal, by no means a communist," Liang said. "I regret that he was sentenced to 10 years in prison without any chance of parole."
Council of Labor Affairs Chairwoman Chen Chu (
As the secretary of democracy activist Kuo Yu-hsin (
"The manuscripts that I delivered were only a small part of his memoirs. Actually, many journalists, priests and students living in US helped a lot," said Chen Chu.
"We hope that Mr. Lei's legacy can be remembered and handed down so that leaders will not commit the same tragedy," she said.
Hong Kong singer Andy Lau’s (劉德華) concert in Taipei tonight has been cancelled due to Typhoon Kong-rei and is to be held at noon on Saturday instead, the concert organizer SuperDome said in a statement this afternoon. Tonight’s concert at Taipei Arena was to be the first of four consecutive nightly performances by Lau in Taipei, but it was called off at the request of Taipei Metro, the operator of the venue, due to the weather, said the organizer. Taipei Metro said the concert was cancelled out of consideration for the audience’s safety. The decision disappointed a number of Lau’s fans who had
Commuters in Taipei picked their way through debris and navigated disrupted transit schedules this morning on their way to work and school, as the city was still working to clear the streets in the aftermath of Typhoon Kong-rey. By 11pm yesterday, there were estimated 2,000 trees down in the city, as well as 390 reports of infrastructure damage, 318 reports of building damage and 307 reports of fallen signs, the Taipei Public Works Department said. Workers were mobilized late last night to clear the debris as soon as possible, the department said. However, as of this morning, many people were leaving messages
A Canadian dental assistant was recently indicted by prosecutors after she was caught in August trying to smuggle 32kg of marijuana into Taiwan, the Aviation Police Bureau said on Wednesday. The 30-year-old was arrested on Aug. 4 after arriving on a flight to Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Chang Tsung-lung (張驄瀧), a squad chief in the Aviation Police Bureau’s Criminal Investigation Division, told reporters. Customs officials noticed irregularities when the woman’s two suitcases passed through X-ray baggage scanners, Chang said. Upon searching them, officers discovered 32.61kg of marijuana, which local media outlets estimated to have a market value of more than NT$50 million (US$1.56
FATALITIES: The storm claimed at least two lives — a female passenger in a truck that was struck by a falling tree and a man who was hit by a utility pole Workers cleared fallen trees and shop owners swept up debris yesterday after one of the biggest typhoons to hit the nation in decades claimed at least two lives. Typhoon Kong-rey was packing winds of 184kph when it slammed into eastern Taiwan on Thursday, uprooting trees, triggering floods and landslides, and knocking out power as it swept across the nation. A 56-year-old female foreign national died from her injuries after the small truck she was in was struck by a falling tree on Provincial Highway 14A early on Thursday. The second death was reported at 8pm in Taipei on Thursday after a 48-year-old man
RSS