Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Cheng Li-chun (鄭麗君) yesterday accused the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall management office of encouraging sycophantic worship of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) by describing the former dictator as the “Savior of Mankind” on the hall’s Web site.
A Taipei woman surnamed Chen (陳) said she found phrases such as “The revered President Chiang, you are the Savior of Mankind. You are a Great Leader for the World,” on the Web site while helping her daughter with her homework.
On a section of the Web site called “Stories of Grandfather Chiang,” it says: “Chiang Kai-shek has a heart full of goodness and kindness. He forgives past wrongs done against him by old foes. He repaid enemies’ malevolence with kindness.”
“What I could not stand was that it was so far removed from historical truth. When I saw these words, it felt like I was back in my childhood days,” Chen said, adding that as the memorial hall used government funds to set up the Web site, it should “educate rather than brainwash our kids.”
Cheng said she has received similar complaints from the public.
The Web site only talks about Chiang’s contribution to Taiwan, but fails to mention anything about the 228 Massacre, the White Terror era or other historical events.
Wu Fu-pin (吳福濱), chairman of the National Alliance of Parents Organization, said he was astounded.
“I could not believe it,” he said. “This was the brainwashing we received 40 or 50 years ago. How can this still happen today in 2013?”
“Since the section of the Web site is meant to educate the children, it should conform to historic truths,” he said. “Otherwise it is myth-making and worshiping Chiang, with the hall becoming a ‘deity temple’ for Chiang.”
Hsu Hsiao-cheng (許孝誠), a Taipei high-school history teacher, said there are different facets to history.
“However, when introducing the history of Chiang to the children, historical facts should be presented, without subjective interpretation and viewpoints,” he said.
In response, Wu Tsu-sheng (吳祖勝), head of the hall’s management office, said that since the purpose of the memorial was to commemorate Chiang, it was inappropriate to mention controversial incidents.
History should be judged by historians and this is not something the memorial hall should do, he added.
The hall’s management office also stirred controversy earlier this week by launching a product design competition encourging the public to submit designs inspired by the memorial hall and stories about Chiang and his second wife, Soong Mayling (宋美齡).
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
Greenpeace yesterday said that it is to appeal a decision last month by the Taipei High Administrative Court to dismiss its 2021 lawsuit against the Ministry of Economic Affairs over “loose” regulations governing major corporate electricity consumers. The climate-related lawsuit — the first of its kind in Taiwan — sought to require the government to enforce higher green energy thresholds on major corporations to reduce emissions in light of climate change and an uptick in extreme weather. The suit, filed by Greenpeace East Asia, the Environmental Jurists Association and four individual plaintiffs, was dismissed on May 8 following four years of litigation. The
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
The New Taipei City Government would assist relatives of those killed or injured in last month’s car-ramming incident in Sansia District (三峽) to secure compensation, Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said yesterday, two days after the driver died in a hospital. “The city government will do its best to help the relatives of the car crash incident seek compensation,” Hou said. The mayor also said that the city’s Legal Affairs, Education and Social Welfare departments have established a joint mechanism to “provide coordinated assistance” to victims and their families. Three people were killed and 12 injured when a car plowed into schoolchildren and their
RSS