A series of events have been organized by a number of civil groups to mark this year's 228 Peace Memorial Day, as well as a number of events aimed at protesting against China's planned anti-secession law and raising the public's awareness of the threat posed by China to Taiwan's democracy.
The events were announced yesterday at a news conference held jointly by groups including the Northern, Central, Southern and Eastern Societies, as well as the Taiwan Professor's Association and a number of other organizations.
The 228 Peace Memorial Day was dedicated to commemorate the victims of the 228 Incident, a military crackdown on civilian protests that began on Feb. 27, 1947, against the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration. Historians estimate that around 30,000 people were killed in the ensuing bloodshed.
Titled "228 Free Taiwan Global Action" (
"Chinese leaders often say that they want to listen to the voice of Taiwan's people," said Chet Yang (楊文嘉), secretary-general of the Northern Taiwan Society. "We will send them the views collected from the phone-booth and let them hear what Taiwan people want to say for real."
Both the "E-Wish Tree" and the phone-booth will be placed in the square in front of the Red Chamber in Ximending in Taipei City.
According to Yang, the highlight of the series would be the gathering of a crowd holding torches at numerous designated points nationwide and cities around the world on the night of Feb. 28 to express Taiwan's determination to safeguard its freedom and protest against China's aggression.
"We hope many people -- like during the 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally -- would come and join us and show China and the whole world our voice," said Northern Taiwan Society chairman Wu Shuh-min (
Senior presidential adviser Koo Kwang-ming (
"The anti-secesssion law is ridiculous. It will not be realized, for not only is Taiwan against it, but the international community will not buy it, either, " Koo said.
A statement titled "Century Declaration of Free Taiwan" (
"We will keep voicing our call to the world to respect Taiwan's right of survival, despite the UN having locked its sense of justice and its declaration of human rights in the drawer; while the US' founding spirit of freedom and justice is sometimes awake and sometimes asleep, and the democratic countries of the world oftentimes kowtow to China's power," Wang read from the declaration.
"With God as our witness, we pledge that we will strive all we can to safeguard our nation, our territory, our people, our freedom and democracy, our present lifestyle and the rights which we are born with as people of freedom," the declaration read.
"This pledge will pass on to future generations, year after year, from every city to every country in the world ... we will not stop as long as Taiwan becomes a truly free and independent country that is free of interference from other powerful nations," it said.
"While there is regret that I was not able to write a `Taiwanese Declaration of Independence,' I am, however, honored to have hereby written the `Century Declaration of Free Taiwan,'" Wang said.
The Declaration will be forwarded to all foreign missions in Taiwan to announce Taiwan's desire to pursue freedom, Wang said.
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