The Legislative Yuan yesterday passed a proposal to make April 7 “National Freedom of Speech Day” in honor of democracy movement pioneer Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕), who committed suicide by self-immolation 20 years ago.
The move came after Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said at a memorial gathering for Deng on Monday that the party would make the proposal.
“Deng contributed immensely to the liberty that the people of Taiwan enjoy today,” DPP Legislator Wong Chin-chu (翁金珠) said.
Wong represented the party in making the proposal, and told the Taipei Times that since no one had objected, the proposal now awaits final approval from the Executive Yuan.
On April 7, 1989, Deng, then editor-in-chief of Freedom Era Weekly (自由時代週刊), set himself on fire as heavily armed police attempted to break into his office following his 71 days of self-imposed isolation after he was charged with sedition for the anti-government views expressed in his magazine.
When he set himself on fire, Deng said that “the KMT cannot catch me, they can only catch my corpse.”
Deng was also involved in the erection of the first 228 Incident monument in Chiayi City in 1989, which led to a watershed discussion of the 228 massacre, Wong said, adding that the legislature later passed the 228 victims compensation program.
In response, KMT caucus deputy secretary-general Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) said he did not know what Wong meant by saying that the legislature passed her proposal.
“There are certain legal procedures to establish a national memorial day — memorial days cannot be determined by legislative decisions alone,” he said.
“If the DPP feels it is important to establish a Freedom of Speech Day, they would have done so when they were in office. That they didn’t shows that the DPP only wants to bring up the issue to get sympathy,” Lin added.
In related news, Huang Hua (黃華), who initiated the New Country Movement with Deng in 1988, began to stage a seven-day hunger strike yesterday at Liberty Plaza in Taipei in protest of the government’s plan to sign an economic cooperation framework agreement with China.
Huang said he was also doing so to continue Deng’s unfinished mission of establishing a sovereign country.
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS