The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday urged the government to change the date of Youth Day from March 29 to March 21, the day in 1990 that former president Lee Teng-hui (
"Youth Day is the day that Chinese revolutionaries initiated a rebellion against the Qing Dynasty in 1911, before the Republic of China (ROC) was built," TSU's director of the Department of Youth Development Wang I-chou (王義州) said in a news conference held yesterday afternoon at the TSU's headquarters. "However, the ROC doesn't exist anymore for young people living in Taiwan. The origin of this red-letter day has nothing to do with them. We think it makes no sense that the central government still holds services to pay homage to Chinese revolutionaries."
In 1954, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government set March 29 as the nation's Youth Day to commemorate the "72 Martyrs" who died in an unsuccessful revolt against the Qing Dynasty launched in Guangzhou in 1911.
PHOTO: WANG MIN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
Wang said that the TSU will ask its legislative caucus to propose a motion to change Youth Day from March 29 to March 21, a significant day that triggered a series of political reforms.
In March 1990, over 300,000 college students launched a sit-in demonstration at CKS Memorial Hall to ask for direct election of the president and vice president and an over-all re-election of National Assembly representatives. On March 21, Lee, then president, received the student representatives in the Presidential Office and reacted positively to their demands.
"Taiwanese young people created history with their actions and ignited the reform on March 21," Wang said. "We think that day should be set as Taiwan's Youth Day."
Chao Tien-lin (
Meanwhile, TSU Secretary-General Chen Chien-ming (陳建銘) said yesterday that the party has issued an order asking all TSU members to help mobilize at least 100,000 people to join in Saturday's march. Chen said that Lee will give a speech on that day but might not join in the parade because of security concerns.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a "tsunami watch" alert after a magnitude 8.7 earthquake struck off the Kamchatka Peninsula in northeastern Russia earlier in the morning. The quake struck off the east coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula at 7:25am (Taiwan time) at a depth of about 19km, the CWA said, citing figures from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The CWA's Seismological Center said preliminary assessments indicate that a tsunami could reach Taiwan's coastal areas by 1:18pm today. The CWA urged residents along the coast to stay alert and take necessary precautions as waves as high as 1m could hit the southeastern
The National Museum of Taiwan Literature is next month to hold an exhibition in Osaka, Japan, showcasing the rich and unique history of Taiwanese folklore and literature. The exhibition, which is to run from Aug. 10 to Aug. 20 at the city’s Central Public Hall, is part of the “We Taiwan” at Expo 2025 series, highlighting Taiwan’s cultural ties with the international community, National Museum of Taiwan Literature director Chen Ying-fang (陳瑩芳) said. Folklore and literature, among Taiwan’s richest cultural heritages, naturally deserve a central place in the global dialogue, Chen said. Taiwan’s folklore would be immediately apparent at the entrance of the
Speeding and badly maintained roads were the main causes of a school bus accident on a rainy day in Taipei last year that severely injured two people and left 22 with minor injuries, the Taiwan Transportation and Safety Board said. On March 11 last year, a Kang Chiao International School bus overturned inside the Wenshan Tunnel (文山隧道) on the northbound lane of the Xinyi Expressway. The tour bus, owned by Long Lai Co, exceeded the speed limit after entering the tunnel, the board’s investigation found. Sensing that the rear of the vehicle was swaying, the driver attempted to use the service and exhaust
Central and southern Taiwan are to see increasingly heavy rainfall from last night through Friday due to the effects of a low-pressure system and southwesterly winds, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said Tropical Storm Co-May had weakened into a low-pressure system on Saturday, but that it strengthened again into a tropical depression (TD 11) near the seas around Japan's Ryukyu Islands due to favorable environmental conditions. The tropical depression is expected to persist for two to three days, moving west-northwest by this afternoon and reaching China's Zhejiang through the East China Sea tomorrow,
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