A memorial park in honor of late minister of justice Chen Ding-nan (陳定南) opened in Yilan County on Saturday, coinciding with the fifth anniversary of his passing.
Chen, of the Democratic Progressive Party, died of lung cancer in November 2006. He was known as “Mr Clean” because of his dedication to fighting corruption during his political career, which began with his election as Yilan County commissioner in 1981.
The park’s opening ceremony was attended by former Academia Sinica president Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲) and Taiwan Solidarity Union Chairman Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝).
Photo: Yang Yi-min, Taipei Times
When Chen passed away, the Chen Ding-nan Educational Foundation was established and donations were solicited for Chen Ding-nan Memorial Park to be built near his former residence in Sansing Township (三星), Yilan County, the foundation said.
The park has not only preserved the historic house in which Chen was born, it added new structures in an L-shaped layout, the foundation said.
Architect Huang Chien-hsing (黃建興) said the new buildings consist of primarily square structures in a bid to portray Chen’s just and upstanding life.
However, Huang Chien-hsing added that the buildings also incorporate arcs, to symbolizes that Chen, despite his rigid and inflexible morals, could still be soft and lenient in private.
The park’s landscaping was designed by Toshiya Ishimura to remind the visitor of Chen’s achievements during his stints as Yilan County commissioner and the minister of justice, the foundation said.
On display at the park’s exhibition hall are Chen’s briefcase as well as his shoes, and the watch given to Chen by his father when he was admitted into college.
There are also various written accounts of memorable events and small stories when Chen was the county commissioner and minister of justice.
Inside the memorial hall, many large pictures of Chen taken at various moments in his life are on display, allowing visitors to see Chen everywhere within the hall.
There is also artwork on display, such as a portrait of Chen made from 1,000 pencil heads in a matrix formation by artist Wang Chun-lung (王俊隆).
The park is open from 9am to 12am and 1:30pm to 5pm everyday except Mondays and admission is free.
Translated by Jake Chung, Staff Writer
SEND A MESSAGE: Sinking the amphibious assault ship, the lead warship of its class, is meant to show China the US Navy is capable of sinking their ships, an analyst said The US and allied navies plan to sink a 40,000-tonne ship at the latest Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise to simulate defeating a Chinese amphibious assault on Taiwan. This year’s RIMPAC — the 29th iteration of the world’s largest naval exercise — involves the US, 28 partners, more than 25,000 personnel, 40 warships, three submarines and more than 150 aircraft operating in and around Hawaii from yesterday to Aug. 1, the US Navy said in a press release. The major components of the event include multidomain warfare exercises in multiship surface engagements, anti-submarine warfare and multi-axis defense of a carrier strike
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
The airspace around Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) is to be closed for an hour on July 25 and July 23 respectively, due to the Han Kuang military exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The annual exercise is to be held on Taiwan proper and its outlying islands from July 22 to 26. During last year’s exercise, the military conducted anti-aircraft landing drills at the Taoyuan airport for the first time, for which a one-hour no-fly ban was issued. Based on a live-fire bulletin sent out by the Maritime and Port Bureau, the nation’s
CROSS-BORDER CRIME: The suspects cannot be charged with cybercrime in Indonesia as their targets were in Malaysia, an Indonesian immigration director said Indonesian immigration authorities have detained 103 Taiwanese after a raid at a villa on Bali, officials said yesterday. They were accused of misusing their visas and residence permits, and are suspected of possible cybercrimes, Safar Muhammad Godam, director of immigration supervision and enforcement at the Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights told reporters at a news conference. “The 103 foreign nationals stayed at the villa and conducted suspicious activities, which we suspect are activities related to cybercrime activities,” he said, presenting laptops and routers at the news conference. Godam said Indonesian authorities cannot charge them with conducting cybercrime. “During the inspection, we