When friends of Liu Yueh-shan (劉玥珊), an employee of an electronics firm in Taichung, heard that she had just returned from a trip to Green Island (綠島), they were eager to find out if she had gone snorkeling or tried the hot springs on the island’s northeast coast.
“I would always tell them that ‘I wasn’t going there for fun,’” Liu wrote in her online journal. “I told them I was there to be in prison, to feel and experience the torture and sufferings that my grandfather had been through.”
Liu knew from her childhood that her grandfather was one of the victims of the 228 Incident and was executed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Government in Taipei. The 228 Incident took place in 1947 when Chinese Nationalist troops suppressed a Taiwanese uprising, leaving tens of thousands dead, missing or imprisoned.
Liu, however, was not motivated to take on this root-searching journey until she saw the name of her grandmother, Liu Wan-shan (劉萬山), carved on the 228 Monument in the Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall in March.
Liu was one of the 40 people who participated in the Prison Experience Camp last month, hosted by the Taiwan 21st Century Cultural Association. Participants stayed in prison cells at the Eastern Coastal Patrol Office on Green Island for two nights. Aside from spending the night in prison, the association took them to visit the Oasis Village (綠洲山莊), which is now known for once being the home of political prisoners.
Attendees also took part in a question-and-answer session with victims of the White Terror, who were addressed as “freshmen” (新生) back in those days.
The Oasis Village is no longer used as a jail. The history, however, has made Green Island a must-visit tourist attraction for those interested in the nation’s history.
The association’s chief secretary, Chen Yi-shan (陳億珊) said that young people learn many things through the event.
Facilities inside the village, such as the large hexagon prison that housed all the inmates and the administrative office, remain intact. Two years ago, the government decided to establish the Green Island Culture Park (綠島文化園區).
“The 13th Squadron,” (中隊), for example, was a title given to those who died on the island from sickness or accidents. Those of the 13th squadron were buried in a site near the village.
“Hell’s Gate” (鬼門關) is a giant rock near the seaside in the shape of an elephant’s nose. Every newcomer had to enter Oasis Village under the elephant’s nose. The rock was named Hell’s Gate because it led to the unpredictable path of life or death.
Built in 1999, the Human Rights Memorial Park near the Oasis Village has also become part of the culture park. Designed by Taiwanese architect Han Pao-teh (漢寶德), the Memorial Park is known for its Human Rights Monument, the first one in Asia.
On the monument is a verse written by poet Bo Yang (柏楊): “In that era, mothers cried night after night over their children imprisoned on this island.”
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
RSS