Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City councilors and relatives of victims of the 228 Incident yesterday criticized the city government for putting up signs that describe 228 Peace Park as the “228 Peace Disaster Prevention Park.”
“Since when has the 228 Incident become a ‘peace disaster’?” DPP City Councilor Chien Yu-yen (簡余晏) asked at a press conference while holding pictures of the blue signs with white print that read “228 disaster prevention park” (二二八防災公園) in Chinese and “228 peace disaster prevention park” in English.
Fourteen of the signs were found on streets around the park.
PHOTO: CNA
The 228 Incident refers to an uprising across the country against the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime in 1947 that was violently suppressed by the government.
Inside 228 Peace Park in Taipei stands the 228 Memorial Museum, which was used as a radio station during the initial days of the incident to spread news about the uprising that began in Taipei.
Some victims’ family members said the signs’ name change was politically motivated.
“I don’t want to think this way, but I sort of suspect the city government made the change to erase the historic memory,” former Memorial Foundation of the 228 Incident executive director Yang Chen-long (楊振隆) said.
Taipei City Fire Department official Chou Chung-chi (周鍾驥), who took part in the press conference, denied the change was politically motivated, but said the wording on the sign may not be appropriate.
He said the park was designated a “disaster prevention park” in Zhongzheng District (中正) as part of the city government’s aim to create one large open-air disaster asylum for each of the city’s 12 administrative districts.
“For the project, we’ve decided to insert the word ‘disaster prevention’ into each park’s name, so we have signs with names like ‘Da-an Disaster Prevention Park’ and ‘Shilin Disaster Prevention Park,’” Chou said. “‘The name ‘228 Peace Disaster Prevention Park’ does look quite strange, but we didn’t think that far when we made the signs.”
He said the blue “disaster prevention park” signs were put up so people would know which parks have been designated as open-air shelters.
“We will take down all the ‘228 Peace Disaster Prevention Park’ signs within a week, and will hold meetings to decide what should be on the new signs before putting up new signs,” Chou said.
Aftershocks from a magnitude 6.2 earthquake that struck off Yilan County at 3:45pm yesterday could reach a magnitude of 5 to 5.5, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Seismological Center technical officer Chiu Chun-ta (邱俊達) told a news conference that the epicenter of the temblor was more than 100km from Taiwan. Although predicted to measure between magnitude 5 and 5.5, the aftershocks would reach an intensity of 1 on Taiwan’s 7-tier scale, which gauges the actual effect of an earthquake, he said. The earthquake lasted longer in Taipei because the city is in a basin, he said. The quake’s epicenter was about 128.9km east-southeast
GENSLER SURVEY: ‘Economic infrastructure is not enough. A city needs to inspire pride, offer moments of joy and foster a sense of belonging,’ the company said Taipei was named the city with the “highest staying power” in the world by US-based design and architecture firm Gensler. The Taiwanese capital earned the top spot among 65 cities across six continents with 64 percent of Taipei respondents in a survey of 33,000 people saying they wanted to stay in the city. Rounding out the top five were Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City (61 percent), Singapore (59 percent), Sydney (58 percent) and Berlin (51 percent). Sixth to 10th place went to Monterrey, Mexico; Munich, Germany; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Vancouver; and Seoul. Cities in the US were ranked separately, with Minneapolis first at
The New Taipei City Government today warned about the often-overlooked dangers of playing in water, and recommended safe swimming destinations to cool off from the summer heat. The following locations in the city as safe and fun for those looking to enjoy the water: Chienshuiwan (淺水灣), Baishawan (白沙灣), Jhongjiao Bay (中角灣), Fulong Beach Resort (福隆海水浴場) and Sansia District’s (三峽) Dabao River (大豹溪), New Taipei City Tourism and Travel Department Director-General Yang Tsung-min (楊宗珉) said. Outdoor bodies of water have variables outside of human control, such as changing currents, differing elevations and environmental hazards, all of which can lead to accidents, Yang said. Sudden
Tropical Storm Podul has formed over waters north-northeast of Guam and is expected to approach the seas southeast of Taiwan next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. The 11th Pacific storm of the year developed at 2am over waters about 2,660km east of Oluanpi (歐鑾鼻), Pingtung County — Taiwan's southernmost tip. It is projected to move westward and could have its most significant impact on Taiwan on Wednesday and Thursday next week, the CWA said. The agency did not rule out the possibility of issuing a sea warning at that time. According to the CWA's latest update, Podul is drifting west-northwest
RSS