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).
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