A group of artists commemorated 228 Memorial Day yesterday by staging an art fair with the theme "Who slaughters justice?"
"Who slaughters justice? It's not the brutal rulers of the 228 massacre, but the Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT], which destroyed visual records of the incident during the White Terror," said Chen Chin-huang (陳錦煌), the head of the 228 Incident Memorial Foundation.
The scarcity of documentation has led some Taiwanese to doubt whether the incident happened, he said, which is why the foundation has organized the fair to bring history to life and to raise public awareness of the fact that justice still has not been served.
On Feb. 27, 1947, the arrest of a cigarette vendor in Taipei led to large-scale protests by Taiwanese people against the corruption and repression of the KMT regime.
Dictator Chiang Kai-shek (
Historians estimate that some 20,000 people were killed during the crackdown that followed.
"Why is an event that resulted in so many deaths toned down with the term `Incident' instead of `Massacre?' Why do some people think any discussion of the issue is a move to provoke `ethnic tensions?' Why is the younger generation of this country not concerned?" Chen Chin-huang said.
He said Chiang's implementation of martial law, which lasted for 38 years, was to blame for the truth being swept under the carpet and it being turned into a highly taboo subject.
In addition to exhibiting 20 pieces of artwork showing the military using violence against protesters -- some of which were done by survivors of the massacre -- the foundation invited seven artists to create new works for the fair.
The exhibit also included an outline of the events that led up to and followed the violence on Feb. 28, 1947, including what triggered the protests, how they spread across Taiwan, how they were quelled and the aftermath, including strict government regulation and surveillance of society.
One section of the exhibit includes information about massacres and violent crackdowns in other countries: the pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju, South Korea, in 1980, the 1915 to 1918 Armenian Genocide in Turkey, the Holocaust and the widespread abuses during apartheid in South Africa.
The exhibit's organizers said they hoped the information would highlight the process of transitional justice and offer a comparison between efforts toward reconciliation abroad and in Taiwan.
Invited to give the opening speech, President Chen Shui-bian (
Such people talk a lot about the need for "ethnic harmony," he said, using it as a reason not to face up to the deeds of the authoritarian regime.
The exhibition, taking place at 228 National Memorial Hall in Taipei, will run until the end of March from 9:30am to 5:30pm from Tuesdays to Sundays and will be closed on Mondays.
Hong Kong-based American singer-songwriter Khalil Fong (方大同) has passed away at the age of 41, Fong’s record label confirmed yesterday. “With unwavering optimism in the face of a relentless illness for five years, Khalil Fong gently and gracefully bid farewell to this world on the morning of February 21, 2025, stepping into the next realm of existence to carry forward his purpose and dreams,” Fu Music wrote on the company’s official Facebook page. “The music and graphic novels he gifted to the world remain an eternal testament to his luminous spirit, a timeless treasure for generations to come,” it said. Although Fong’s
China’s military buildup in the southern portion of the first island chain poses a serious threat to Taiwan’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply, a defense analyst warned. Writing in a bulletin on the National Defense and Security Research’s Web site on Thursday, Huang Tsung-ting (黃宗鼎) said that China might choke off Taiwan’s energy supply without it. Beginning last year, China entrenched its position in the southern region of the first island chain, often with Russia’s active support, he said. In May of the same year, a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) force consisting of a Type 054A destroyer, Type 055 destroyer,
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) was questioned by prosecutors for allegedly orchestrating an attack on a taxi driver after he was allegedly driven on a longer than necessary route in a car he disliked. The questioning at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office was ongoing as of press time last night. Police have recommended charges of attempted murder. The legally embattled actor — known for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代) — is under a separate investigation for allegedly using fake medical documents to evade mandatory military service. According to local media reports, police said Wang earlier last year ordered a
POLICY UNCHANGED? Despite Trump’s remarks, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured that US policy toward Taiwan has remained consistent since the 1970s US President Donald Trump on Wednesday again refused to make clear his stance on protecting Taiwan from a hypothetical takeover by China during his presidency. Asked by a reporter during a Cabinet meeting whether it was his policy that China would never take Taiwan by force while he is president, Trump declined to give a definitive answer. “I never comment on that,” he said. “I don’t comment on it because I don’t want to ever put myself in that position.” Trump also reiterated that he has a “great relationship” with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and said that Washington welcomes good relations with
RSS