An increasing number of young Taiwanese are taking an interest in the life and tragic end of Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕), the executive director of the foundation named after the late democracy activist said yesterday on the 24th anniversary of Deng’s death by self-immolation.
The mood at the Deng Liberty Foundation, located on the recently renamed Freedom Lane in Taipei, was one of introspection as groups of people yesterday came to pay their respects to the former editor-in-chief of Freedom Era Weekly (自由時代週刊). Facing charges of sedition for his calls on the government to protect freedom of expression, Deng set himself ablaze in his office on April 7, 1989.
Ten years later, the same office, which by then had been turned into a human rights memorial hall, was opened to the public, showcasing a collection of photographs of Deng and other activists who fought for freedom in Taiwan under martial law. Hauntingly, Deng’s office remains as it was found after he committed the ultimate sacrifice, a reminder of a not-so-distant past.
Photo: J. Michael Cole, Taipei Times
Visitors yesterday honored the man by depositing red roses outside the charred room. A single white scarf, left behind by a Tibetan organization, graced the entrance to Deng’s study.
Addressing a group of several dozen visitors, foundation chief executive Tsao Chin-jung (曹欽榮) said he had observed in recent years a marked change in the interest among young people to learn more about Deng’s life and sacrifice.
He said the foundation was receiving more requests from students to visit it, to deepen their understanding of the man, whose Mainlander background had not diminished his commitment to Taiwan, as former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), like Deng a former political prisoner, once said of him.
Thanks to the Internet and social media, interest in Deng’s life seems to be seeing a revival, Tsao said, adding that most young visitors today already had a fair understanding of Deng’s life and works.
Just as this correspondent was entering the memorial hall, he ran into Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆), a student leader who played a major role leading the anti-media monopoly movement against the attempted — now failed — acquisition of Next Media by a consortium that included Want Want China Times Group chairman Tsai Eng-meng (蔡衍明), whose close ties with the regime in Beijing have made him a controversial figure in the nation’s media environment.
Earlier in the day, Lin and several young activists had joined others during a ceremony at the Jinbaoshan Cemetery in New Taipei City (新北市) to honor Deng.
Young people have also sought other means to remember Deng. National Cheng Kung University’s 02 Group, whose members have pledged to continue to pursue the values that Deng sacrificed his life for, was scheduled to hold a candlelit vigil last night in memory of Deng.
Young Taiwanese were not the only ones who showed up to honor Deng. Following Tsao’s presentation at the foundation, a young Chinese student, who is studying at National Taiwan University, also made a brief speech.
Carrying a satchel he had just purchased from the foundation, the student said there were reasons to worry about Taiwan’s future, and he pointed to corruption within the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) as the main problem.
Several Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) officials including Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) are to be summoned for questioning and then transferred to prosecutors for holding an illegal assembly in Taipei last night, the Taipei Police said today. Chu and two others hosted an illegal assembly and are to be requested to explain their actions, the Taipei City Police Department's Zhongzheng (中正) First Precinct said, referring to a protest held after Huang Lu Chin-ju (黃呂錦茹), KMT Taipei's chapter director, and several other KMT staffers were questioned for alleged signature forgery in recall petitions against Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators. Taipei prosecutors had filed
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
President William Lai (賴清德) has appointed former vice president Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) to attend the late Pope Francis’ funeral at the Vatican City on Saturday on his behalf, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today. The Holy See announced Francis’ funeral would take place on Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square. The ministry expressed condolences over Francis’ passing and said that Chen would represent Taiwan at the funeral and offer condolences in person. Taiwan and the Vatican have a long-standing and close diplomatic relationship, the ministry said. Both sides agreed to have Chen represent Taiwan at the funeral, given his Catholic identity and
Lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday established a friendship group with their counterparts in Ukraine to promote parliamentary exchanges between the two countries. A ceremony in Taipei for the Taiwan-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Association, initiated by DPP Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷), was attended by lawmakers and officials, including Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) and European Economic and Trade Office in Taiwan Director Lutz Gullner. The increasingly dire situation in Ukraine is a global concern, and Taiwan cannot turn its back when the latter is in need of help, as the two countries share many common values and interests,