Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) yesterday launched an electronic book chronicling the life and times of democracy pioneer Lei Chen (雷震), who was accused of sedition and sentenced to 10 years in prison for publishing a pro-democracy magazine in 1960.
Hsieh said Taiwan had paid a high price for the mistakes made by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) authoritarian regime during its 50-year rule.
"Lei saw clearly that the KMT's campaign to reclaim China was futile and realized that democratization and `Taiwanization' were inseparable," Hsieh said at a forum organized by the Lei Chen Democracy and Human Rights Fund to mark the launching of the e-book, titled Documentary Collection on the Lei Chen Case.
treason
Lei, a founder and publisher of the Free China journal, was arrested on Sept. 4, 1960, on treason charges and sentenced to 10 years in prison at the behest of late dictator Chiang Kai-shek (
Declassified documents show that the Taiwan Garrison Command proposed drastic measures to stop the publication of the journal. Six hours before the verdict was handed down, Chiang issued an order that Lei's sentence should not be less than 10 years, and that no appeal should be allowed.
During his 10 years in jail, Lei wrote a 4-million-word memoir chronicling his life and thoughts on democracy. However, the memoir and most government documents regarding the "Lei Chen incident" have either disappeared or been destroyed.
Chen Yi-shen (
His proposal received harsh criticism from Chiang Kai-shek and his son Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國).
warning
Lei was warned by the Garrison Command after publishing an editorial in the Free China journal criticizing the government for setting traps to catch corrupt officials.
Chinese dissident Ruan Ming (阮銘) said that although Lei and Chiang Ching-kuo were both against communism, Lei insisted that democracy and freedom were the best alternative while Chiang Ching-kuo contended that dictatorship was the answer.
Lei suggested changing the Republic of China's (ROC) title to the "Democratic State of Chinese Taiwan." He proposed that the country could be independent of the People's Republic of China under a "two Chinas" model.
The Chiangs, however, flatly rejected Lei's proposal. The US government severed diplomatic ties with the ROC and withdrew its forces from the country in 1979.
Although Lei did not live to see the democratization of Taiwan, Ruan said Chiang Ching-kuo had put Lei's will into practice and helped to transform the country into a more democratic state.
Lee Shiao-feng (
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
RSS