Establishing a "Taiwanese historical perspective" to interpret local history from the Taiwanese people's point of view is a priority job for local historians now that Taiwan has achieved democracy, President Chen Shui-bian (
"In a democratized Taiwan, we don't need to create any more political myths or political dogma but need to face up to history honestly," Chen said.
"What we need to work hardest on now is establishing a Taiwan-based `Taiwanese historical perspective,' in addition to realizing the ideals of democracy and human rights," he said.
Chen made the remarks while addressing a seminar on the history of the Republic of China, which focused on the history of Taiwan between 1950 and 1960.
Chen said that in the 20th century, the Taiwanese people were subjected to Japanese colonial rule and authoritarian rule but they still created an economic miracle and later achieved democracy.
"However, there are still crises and important challenges in the democratized Taiwanese society and we need to get to the bottom of these problems," Chen said.
Chen said that Taiwan was seriously distorted under the KMT's rule in the 1950s and 1960s, with political myths being the norm and speech and press freedoms restricted by martial law.
"During that historical period, the words of the people in power were aimed at propping up their regime, which confused the true history. Up until today, it is still not easy for us to restore the true appearance of that evolving era," Chen said.
He said that the history of Taiwan belongs to all the people here and cannot be monopolized or interpreted unilaterally by a minority of people.
Chen said that the true meaning of interpreting Retrocession Day anew from the historical perspective of the Taiwanese people is "to be our own masters," and historical tragedies will repeat themselves if the people do not defend their right to be their own masters.
He said the cultural and structural problems passed down from the past authoritarian rule require serious and in-depth reflection but admitted that it is a difficult task to get rid of the historical burden to establish a historical perspective that is consistent with the collective memory of the Taiwanese people.
To attain this goal, it is most crucial for the concepts of freedom, democracy, human rights and Taiwanese identity to take root in the hearts of the Taiwanese people, he said.
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