The iconic “Lost Bear” (迷失的小熊) symbolizing direct civic discontent with the government-backed Taoyuan Aerotropolis project is to be exhibited in Miaoli County from April 11, the Youth Alliance for Miaoli said on Wednesday.
Standing 8m tall, the “Lost Bear” is a symbol for the anti-Aerotropolis movement, which has criticized the project for allowing corporations to raise land prices via speculation and directly infringing on residents’ right of education, because of the necessitated relocation of several schools.
Designed by Lu Wen-chung (呂文忠), whose father, Lu A-yun (呂阿雲), committed suicide due to the Aerotropolis project, the bear was both a way for Lu Wen-chung to commemorate his father and also raise awareness of the government allowing corporations to rampantly develop land, Youth Alliance member Chen Kuan-yu (陳冠宇) said.
Lu A-yun, concerned that the family’s ancestral grave was on a plot of land to be expropriated for the project, committed suicide by ingesting pesticide in November 2013.
The Lu family said that one-third of its land had already been expropriated by the government for the building of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport when Lu A-yun was younger.
Chen said the organization requires a significant number of volunteers to help out with what is estimated to be a three-month-long exhibition.
More information regarding volunteering assistance for the exhibition is to be made available on the organization’s page on Facebook, Chen said.
Thousands of netizens have already liked the Facebook page “Of things small and large in Houlong [Township]” after news of the “Lost Bear” exhibition going to Miaoli was posted.
Many have also posted messages offering to volunteer and help set up the event.
A series of discussions on the legacy of martial law and authoritarianism are to be held at the Taipei International Book Exhibition this month, featuring findings and analysis by the Transitional Justice Commission. The commission and publisher Book Republic organized the series, entitled “Escaping the Nation’s Labyrinth of Memory: What Authoritarian Symbols and Records Can Tell Us,” to help people navigate narratives through textual analysis and comparisons with other nations. The four-day series is to begin on Thursday next week with a discussion between commission Chairwoman Yang Tsui (楊翠), Polish-language translator Lin Wei-yun (林蔚昀), and Polish author and artist Pawel Gorecki comparing
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