The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday vowed to protect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and urged the public to denounce the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which it accused of targeting the monument to provoke ethnic conflict.
During a photographic exhibition dedicated to the memorial that runs through next Tuesday at KMT headquarters, KMT Acting Chairman Chiang Pin-kung (江丙坤) said the hall was a favorite tourist attraction for both local and foreign visitors. He condemned the DPP for creating social and ethnic confrontation with its "anti-Chiang Kai-shek [蔣介石]" campaign.
In addition to showcasing the beauty of the hall in its exhibition, Chiang said the party would hold a protest titled "Love Taiwan, Defend the Republic of China" on Saturday to express its opposition against the DPP's attack on Chiang Kai-shek.
PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
Joining in the criticism of the DPP, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (
"[Chiang Kai-shek] made numerous contributions to our nation and these contributions outweigh the criticisms against him," Hau said during a question-and-answer session in the Taipei City Council.
Taipei City Councilor Lee Chin-yuan (李慶元), a New Party member, later sent a small statue of Chiang Kai-shek to Hau and urged the city government to defend the memorial.
Taipei City Councilor Yen Sheng-kuan (顏聖冠), a DPP member, questioned the city government's listing of the hall as a "temporary historical monument" despite its relatively short 27-year history.
Taipei City Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Lee Yung-ping (
In related news, Public Construction Commission Chairman Wu Tze-cheng (吳澤成) said a public opinion poll on the monument will be conducted in the next month or two. The poll will include the question of whether or not the monument's outer walls should be demolished.
Wu said the commission would also assemble a task force to oversee the redesign of the monument's park following the poll.
Speaking to the legislature's Education and Culture Committee yesterday, Wu said his commission would also call on scores of "experts" in deciding if and how to demolish the hall's outer walls.
Wu said any redesign of the hall and its environs would be made to convenience the public.
Additional reporting by Max Hirsch
Taipei and New Taipei City government officials are aiming to have the first phase of the Wanhua-Jungho-Shulin Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) line completed and opened by 2027, following the arrival of the first train set yesterday. The 22km-long Light Green Line would connect four densely populated districts in Taipei and New Taipei City: Wanhua (萬華), Jhonghe (中和), Tucheng (土城) and Shulin (樹林). The first phase of the project would connect Wanhua and Jhonghe districts, with Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall and Chukuang (莒光) being the terminal stations. The two municipalities jointly hosted a ceremony for the first train to be used
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