A concert commemorating the anniversary of the Dapu incident was held in Miaoli County last evening, with the sponsors saying the event was aimed not only at remembering what had been lost and learned during the past year, but at sending a message to the government that the public will never forget the government brutality shown in the incident.
On July 18 last year, four houses in Dapu Borough (大埔) in Miaoli County’s Jhunan Township (竹南) were demolished against the will of their owners to make way for a controversial science park extension project.
The incident eventually led to the death of the owner of the Chang Pharmacy, Chang Sen-wen (張森文). It remains unclear whether Chang committed suicide.
The Dapu incident has become a symbol of how the public are fighting to help themselves, the Protect Miaoli Youth Alliance said yesterday.
Although the alliance had been praised for organizing the commemoration event, it was the four families who held out against government oppression who were the ones who should be honored, the alliance said.
The alliance said it would stand side by side with the four families until their homes have been restored.
While the main focus of the commemorative effort was the concert in Dapu — which was held near the disputed site — other activities included creating a wall painting and a photographic record of all attendees in a show of solidarity against the Dapu incident, the alliance said.
Lawyer Chan Shun-kui (詹順貴) and movie director Ko I-chen (柯一正) were among the speakers at the concert, which also featured a performance by dancer Hsiao Tzu-han (蕭紫菡).
Alliance organizer Chen Wei-ting (陳為廷) yesterday wrote on Facebook that “to this day the four victimized families of Dapu have not achieved their demands, and despite the progress and gains over the past year, there are some things that have been be forever lost.”
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