Mayor Hau steps in to protect CKS Hall

The dispute over the fate of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall continued yesterday as the Taipei City Department of Cultural Affairs announced that it had begun a review of the memorial's historical and cultural significance.

The Cabinet announced on Friday that the hall would be renamed "Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall" and the white-washed walls surrounding the memorial would be demolished. But the department said yesterday that residents and historians had filed applications with the department asking for the hall's significance to be reviewed. As such, the department said it was obligated by the Cultural Heritage Preservation Law (文化資產保存法) to investigate.

"The city government takes no sides in matter. Whether or not the walls should be preserved or demolished will be decided after the committee has completed its review. The city government will respect the committee's final decision," Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) told a press conference at city hall yesterday.

Department Commissioner Lee Yong-ping (李永萍) said that as the review process had begun, the hall was now a "temporary monument" and could not be altered. The review process could last anywhere from six months to one year.

The department will invite committee members to examine the hall on March 26 and hold public hearings before making a decision, Lee said.

The law states that anyone damaging a monument is liable to a punishment of seven years in jail and a fine of between NT$30,000 and NT$300,000.

Pan-green Taipei city councilors accused Hau, son of former premier and Chiang loyalist Hau Pei-tsun (郝柏村), of trying to protect Chiang.

"As the hall is less than 30 years old, it cannot be recognized as a historical monument," said Taipei City Councilor Chien Yu-yen (簡余晏), a Taiwan Solidarity Union member.

Councilor Lee Ching-feng (李慶鋒), a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member, urged the city government not to defend "Chiang Kai-shek's personal temple."

Lee Yong-ping acknowledged that the hall, which was opened in 1980, was the newest building to be evaluated for its cultural and historical significance.

But he said that age was not the only determining factor. He added that the hall had been made a "temporary monument" to protect it during the evaluation period.

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus said it supported the city government's decision.

KMT Legislator Lee Ching-an (李慶安) said the Taipei City Government had been forced to take "emergency measures" to protect the memorial.

The DPP caucus, however, said the measure was inappropriate and urged the city government not to stifle public debate.

Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said the memorial's outer walls must be torn down because they symbolized the gap between the dictator and the public.

"The land belongs to the people so we want to make it a public park. That is why we want to tear down the walls," Su said in response to a question from KMT Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇) on the legislative floor.

"I really do not understand why the Taipei City Government would try to stop us by making the memorial hall a monument," Su said.

Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮), at a separate setting yesterday, said she was not against the proposal to change the memorial's name, but thought it unnecessary to demolish its outer walls.

Additional reporting by Flora Wang and Ko Shu-ling

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KMT plans protest against changes to CKS Memorial Hall