Members of a secret society yesterday held a ceremony at the Taipei Armed Forces Hero House (國軍英雄館) to honor its fifth president and other of the society's members.
Around 250 members, including several high-ranking retired generals such as General O Yen-wei (
"It's a great honor to serve as the society's president," said Tu Yi-fei (杜一飛), the new head of the group. "And it's my goal to strengthen the sense of community among society members and lead the Hung Men Society to engage in more work for the welfare and benefit of the public."
As a private organization, the society has long been mysterious due to its low profile, yet it boasts a remarkable membership.
According to Huang Chao-sheng (
Founded more than 300 years ago, "Hung Men members have contributed much to the writing of Chinese history since national father Sun Yat-sen (
Like the Green Gang, another well-known secret society, the Chinese Hung Men Society was involved in Sun's efforts to subvert the Qing dynasty at the turn of the century and was later involved in Chiang Kai-shek's (
"And after the nationalists came to Taiwan, Hung Men members continued to contribute and support the government's work in developing Taiwan," Huang said.
The society's goals have also changed with the times.
"Anti-communism had been Hung Men's mission," Huang said. "And now the ultimate mission of the society is to work on a unified China.
"Hung Men members will continue to uphold the spirit of righteousness and loyalty, the spirits valued most by Hung Men."
According to a society magazine published last December, many high-profile politicians act as advisers to the group. These figures include former New Party lawmaker Elmer Fung (馮滬祥), PFP legislators Lee Ching-an (李慶安), Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋), and Lin Yu-fang (林郁芳) and KMT legislators Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱), Huang Chao-shun (黃昭順), Chu Fong-chi (朱鳳芝), Apollo Chen (陳學聖), Chin Huei-chu (秦慧珠), Mu Min-chu (穆閩珠) and James Chen (陳健治).
FREEDOM OF NAVIGATION: The UK would continue to reinforce ties with Taiwan ‘in a wide range of areas’ as a part of a ‘strong unofficial relationship,’ a paper said The UK plans to conduct more freedom of navigation operations in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea, British Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs David Lammy told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. British Member of Parliament Desmond Swayne said that the Royal Navy’s HMS Spey had passed through the Taiwan Strait “in pursuit of vital international freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.” Swayne asked Lammy whether he agreed that it was “proper and lawful” to do so, and if the UK would continue to carry out similar operations. Lammy replied “yes” to both questions. The
‘OF COURSE A COUNTRY’: The president outlined that Taiwan has all the necessary features of a nation, including citizens, land, government and sovereignty President William Lai (賴清德) discussed the meaning of “nation” during a speech in New Taipei City last night, emphasizing that Taiwan is a country as he condemned China’s misinterpretation of UN Resolution 2758. The speech was the first in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. It is the responsibility of Taiwanese citizens to stand united to defend their national sovereignty, democracy, liberty, way of life and the future of the next generation, Lai said. This is the most important legacy the people of this era could pass on to future generations, he said. Lai went on to discuss
AMENDMENT: Climate change is expected to increase the frequency of high-temperature days, affecting economic productivity and public health, experts said The Central Weather Administration (CWA) is considering amending the Meteorological Act (氣象法) to classify “high temperatures” as “hazardous weather,” providing a legal basis for work or school closures due to extreme heat. CWA Administrator Lu Kuo-chen (呂國臣) yesterday said the agency plans to submit the proposed amendments to the Executive Yuan for review in the fourth quarter this year. The CWA has been monitoring high-temperature trends for an extended period, and the agency contributes scientific data to the recently established High Temperature Response Alliance led by the Ministry of Environment, Lu said. The data include temperature, humidity, radiation intensity and ambient wind,
SECOND SPEECH: All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist the CCP, despite their differences, the president said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday discussed how pro-Taiwan and pro-Republic of China (ROC) groups can agree to maintain solidarity on the issue of protecting Taiwan and resisting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The talk, delivered last night at Taoyuan’s Hakka Youth Association, was the second in a series of 10 that Lai is scheduled to give across Taiwan. Citing Taiwanese democracy pioneer Chiang Wei-shui’s (蔣渭水) slogan that solidarity brings strength, Lai said it was a call for political parties to find consensus amid disagreements on behalf of bettering the nation. All political parties should work together to defend democracy, protect Taiwan and resist
RSS