Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) politicians reaffirmed their support for Deng Nan-jung’s (鄭南榕) struggle yesterday, praising the late independence advocate for his contributions to Taiwan’s freedom and democracy.
“He was a selfless hero that taught us to fearlessly seek the truth and bravely defend our beliefs,” DPP presidential hopeful Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said at a -memorial ceremony marking the 22nd anniversary of his death.
“Only through [these] sacrifices could Taiwan have the hard-won democratic freedoms we see today,” Tsai said.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Tsai, the only leader of the DPP that didn’t participate in Taiwan’s democracy movement during the 1970s and 1980s, said the party would “reflect on the past and remember the lessons learned.”
“Taiwanese paid the price with lives, blood and tears in the pursuit of freedom, democracy and human rights during the one-party system,” she said. “We won’t forget [their sacrifices].”
The remarks come 22 years after the political writer set himself on fire during an arrest by police on charges of sedition for his work on a new Taiwanese constitution.
Among the nearly 100 people present at the memorial were former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) and other senior DPP officials. Family members, a pastor and artists were also present at the ceremony.
“Deng Nan-jung gave his life for Taiwan. The values of freedom, human rights and democracy are not God-given,” said Hsu Chang-hsien (許章賢), a director at the Deng Liberty Foundation. “Taiwanese must continue to defend these ideals.”
Born in Taiwan in 1947 to a family from China, Deng publicly articulated support for Taiwanese independence on numerous occasions in the 1980s at the same time that a charge of sedition was used against proponents of independence.
A follower of liberalism, Deng held a deep belief in freedom of expression and established Freedom Era Weekly in 1984 in pursuit of what he called “100 percent freedom of expression.”
In 1987, Deng made a widely heard statement when delivering a speech at a rally in Taipei: “My name is Deng Nan-jung, I support independence for Taiwan.”
The statement could have gotten him into trouble because the issue of independence was taboo under Martial Law. However, Deng insisted on openly declaring his political ideology because he believed that freedom of expression was a fundamental right for all people.
In 1988, he published a draft “Republic of Taiwan constitution.”
On April 7, 1989, he set himself alight as heavily armed police attempted to break into his office following 71 days of self-imposed isolation after he was charged with sedition for the anti-government stance of his magazine after it published the draft constitution.
Yeh Chu-lan (葉菊蘭), Deng’s widow and former deputy premier, has said that the reason she had been involved in politics for the past 20 years following her husband’s death was motivated by the hope that the next generation of Taiwanese could live free from fear.
Additional reporting by staff writer
People can take the Taipei MRT free of charge if they access it at Nanjing Sanmin Station or Taipei Arena Station on the Green Line between 12am and 6am on Jan. 1, the Taipei Department of Transportation said on Friday, outlining its plans to ease crowding during New Year’s events in the capital. More than 200,000 people are expected to attend New Year’s Eve events in Taipei, with singer A-mei (張惠妹) performing at the Taipei Dome and the city government’s New Year’s Eve party at Taipei City Hall Plaza, the department said. As people have tended to use the MRT’s Blue or
Civil society groups yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan, decrying Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) efforts to pass three major bills that they said would seriously harm Taiwan’s democracy, and called to oust KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁). It was the second night of the three-day “Bluebird wintertime action” protests in Taipei, with organizers announcing that 8,000 people attended. Organized by Taiwan Citizen Front, the Economic Democracy Union (EDU) and a coalition of civil groups, about 6,000 people began a demonstration in front of KMT party headquarters in Taipei on Wednesday, organizers said. For the third day, the organizers asked people to assemble
Taipei is participating in Osaka’s Festival of Lights this year, with a 3m-tall bubble tea light installation symbolizing Taiwan’s bubble tea culture. The installation is designed as a bubble tea cup and features illustrations of Taipei’s iconic landmarks, such as Taipei 101, the Red House and North Gate, as well as soup dumplings and the matchmaking deity the Old Man Under the Moon (月下老人), affectionately known as Yue Lao (月老). Taipei and Osaka have collaborated closely on tourism and culture since Taipei first participated in the festival in 2018, the Taipei City Department of Information and Tourism said. In February, Osaka represented
Taiwanese professional baseball should update sports stadiums and boost engagement to enhance fans’ experience, Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) commissioner Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) told the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) in an interview on Friday. The league has urged Farglory Group and the Taipei City Government to improve the Taipei Dome’s outdated equipment, including relatively rudimentary television and sound systems, and poor technology, he said. The Tokyo Dome has markedly better television and sound systems, despite being 30 years old, because its managers continually upgraded its equipment, Tsai said. In contrast, the Taipei Dome lacked even a room for referees
RSS