President William Lai (賴清德) on Friday sent his condolences to the family of White Terror era victim Tsai Kuan-yu (蔡寬裕), who died a day earlier aged 91, Presidential Office spokesperson Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said.
“May [Tsai’s] spirit of unwavering dedication to the work of transitional justice and deep affection for Taiwan remain with us forever,” Kuo cited Lai as saying in a statement, adding that the president was “saddened” by Tsai’s passing and expressed condolences to Tsai’s family.
Kuo cited Tsai’s involvement in a civil society group which advocated for the rights of those who were politically persecuted during the Martial Law period from 1949 to 1987.
Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei Times
Kuo added that Tsai was also a “key proponent” of the introduction of the Act on Promoting Transitional Justice (促進轉型正義條例), paving the way for more government efforts to restore the truth behind state wrongdoings during the White Terror era and compensate those adversely affected.
The White Terror refers to a period of political repression in Taiwan by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government from 1949 to 1992.
Born on Feb. 5, 1933, in Taipei, Tsai was imprisoned twice for a total of 13 years between the 1950s and 1970s.
He was first targeted by the authorities in 1957 and detained for about six months after being accused of inciting his classmates to strike in protest against the government’s handling of the killing of a Taiwanese national by a US military officer, which was later known as the Liu Zi-ran (劉自然) incident.
In 1962, Tsai was apprehended for suspected involvement in pro-Taiwanese independence activities.
This time, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
He was initially imprisoned in the then-Taipei County, but was later transferred to Taitung, where he was embroiled in an attempt by a group of activists outside the prison to occupy the facility by force as part of their pro-Taiwanese activities.
Tsai had agreed to help open the prison gate for the group, but the plan was uncovered before he could take any action.
As a result, Tsai received an additional three-year prison sentence.
After Tsai was released in May 1975, he launched a shoe manufacturing business in Taichung.
He began calling for government redress for political prisoners during the White Terror era after the lifting of martial law in 1987.
In his later years, he continued to volunteer at the National Human Rights Museum, where he gave lectures and guided tours regularly.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS