When friends of Liu Yueh-shan (劉玥珊), an employee of an electronics firm in Taichung, heard that she had just returned from a trip to Green Island (綠島), they were eager to find out if she had gone snorkeling or tried the hot springs on the island’s northeast coast.
“I would always tell them that ‘I wasn’t going there for fun,’” Liu wrote in her online journal. “I told them I was there to be in prison, to feel and experience the torture and sufferings that my grandfather had been through.”
Liu knew from her childhood that her grandfather was one of the victims of the 228 Incident and was executed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Government in Taipei. The 228 Incident took place in 1947 when Chinese Nationalist troops suppressed a Taiwanese uprising, leaving tens of thousands dead, missing or imprisoned.
Liu, however, was not motivated to take on this root-searching journey until she saw the name of her grandmother, Liu Wan-shan (劉萬山), carved on the 228 Monument in the Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall in March.
Liu was one of the 40 people who participated in the Prison Experience Camp last month, hosted by the Taiwan 21st Century Cultural Association. Participants stayed in prison cells at the Eastern Coastal Patrol Office on Green Island for two nights. Aside from spending the night in prison, the association took them to visit the Oasis Village (綠洲山莊), which is now known for once being the home of political prisoners.
Attendees also took part in a question-and-answer session with victims of the White Terror, who were addressed as “freshmen” (新生) back in those days.
The Oasis Village is no longer used as a jail. The history, however, has made Green Island a must-visit tourist attraction for those interested in the nation’s history.
The association’s chief secretary, Chen Yi-shan (陳億珊) said that young people learn many things through the event.
Facilities inside the village, such as the large hexagon prison that housed all the inmates and the administrative office, remain intact. Two years ago, the government decided to establish the Green Island Culture Park (綠島文化園區).
“The 13th Squadron,” (中隊), for example, was a title given to those who died on the island from sickness or accidents. Those of the 13th squadron were buried in a site near the village.
“Hell’s Gate” (鬼門關) is a giant rock near the seaside in the shape of an elephant’s nose. Every newcomer had to enter Oasis Village under the elephant’s nose. The rock was named Hell’s Gate because it led to the unpredictable path of life or death.
Built in 1999, the Human Rights Memorial Park near the Oasis Village has also become part of the culture park. Designed by Taiwanese architect Han Pao-teh (漢寶德), the Memorial Park is known for its Human Rights Monument, the first one in Asia.
On the monument is a verse written by poet Bo Yang (柏楊): “In that era, mothers cried night after night over their children imprisoned on this island.”
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