Taiwanese independence activist Su Beng's (
Su, now 85, was a wanted man under Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) rule. He was on the government's blacklist, barring him from returning to Taiwan. The spiritual figurehead of the independence camp, his Japanese-language history of the this country was a must read for everyone in the opposition movement.
Born Shih Chao-hui (
He then fled to Japan to avoid arrest, but was detained by the Japanese authorities upon arrival. Tokyo refused Taipei's request for his extradition, however, and granted him political asylum.
In 1967, Su established the Association for Taiwan Independence (ATI,
Although Su has lived in Japan for most of his life, he has significantly influenced the development of Taiwan's democratic movement. His theory of launching an opposition movement from both within and outside the system formed a crucial benchmark for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) when it was founded in 1986.
It can be argued that the DPP's flexibility and efficacy in fighting KMT repression was inspired by Su's dual strategy. The party's Formosa faction advocated participating in elections to gain local and national representation, through which it was hoped broader democratic reforms could be brought about.
On the other hand, the New Tide faction advocated holding street protests and other disruptive and highly visual campaigns against the KMT. It was not afraid of causing conflict. Thanks to this combination of methods, KMT rule was worn down from both inside and outside the system.
In 1991, Taiwan Garrison Command officials broke into a dormitory at National Tsing Hua University and seized copies of Su's book and arrested ATI members. This triggered protests by intellectuals, who called on the government to "respect academic freedom and oppose political prosecution," and eventually gave rise to a national student movement.
As a result, many scholars launched the Action 100 Alliance (
After the DPP came to power, Su decided to return to Taiwan. Before his inauguration, President Chen Shui-bian (
Vincent Lin (
TRANSLATED BY EDDY CHANG
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