As the nation prepares to mark the 68th anniversary of the 228 Incident on Saturday, the 228 Memorial Foundation yesterday released a collection of photographs and interviews recounting the stories of families affected by the massacre.
Completed over a course of five years, the two-volume collection, titled Testimonies of 228 (見證228), features black-and-white portraits of the people interviewed, who include both elderly survivors and family members from around the nation.
Short excerpts from the interviews are presented in both Mandarin and English.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
The compilation was produced by photojournalist Pan Hsiao-shia (潘小俠), human rights activist and oral history expert Chen Ming-cheng (陳銘城) and historian and former political prisoner Yang Bi-chuan (楊碧川).
Over the course of four years, beginning in 2010, the trio traveled across the nation to interview a total of 228 families who were affected by the incident.
Pan embarked on the journey after he completed a photojournalism project focusing on victims of political prosecution during the White Terror era, which followed the 228 Incident and reached its peak during the 1950s and 1960s.
“We interviewed so many people. While the stories were different, they evoked the same emotions,” Yang said, adding that through the work of historians, Taiwanese have slowly uncovered the truth about the 228 Incident.
The foundation said that photographs and images related to the 228 Incident are scarce because the incident was considered taboo during the Martial Law era.
The Incident began on the afternoon of Feb. 27, 1947, when six agents of the Monopoly Bureau’s Taipei branch tried to confiscate illegal cigarettes that widow Lin Chiang-mai (林江邁) was selling in front of the Tien-ma Tea House and her money. After she refused to hand over her stock, she was pistol-whipped on the head and passed out, triggering protests from bystanders. As the agents fled the scene, they opened fire on the crowd, wounding one man, who died the next day.
When word of the incident spread, police stations and military police headquarters were besieged by protesters demanding the Monopoly Bureau agents be prosecuted. The following morning, demonstrators ransacked the Monopoly Bureau’s Taipei branch office. When a crowed gathered in front of the Provincial Executive Office in the afternoon to petition the government over the incidents, military police opened fire with machine guns, killing or injuring several dozen people.
The Garrison Command Headquarters declared a state of emergency and in the ensuing months, a crackdown by the then-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government saw tens of thousands of Taiwanese detained or killed, including a large number of the intellectual elite.
Additional reporting by staff writer
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
RSS