Civic groups and pro-Taiwanese independence parties gathered at the Taipei District Court yesterday to lodge a provisional injunction aimed at halting the Ministry of Education’s proposed adjustments to high-school curriculum guidelines.
The group said the adjustments are an attempt by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to use the state education system to brainwash students with China-centric textbook material.
The legal move and rally activities were organized by the Taiwanese National Congress and the Taiwan Government Party.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
The groups’ leaders said the move is to support protests by high-school students aimed at blocking the amendments, adding that going through a judicial process would be the most effective way of achieving their objectives.
Representatives from the Taiwanese National Party, Taiwan Independence Party (TIP), Happy National Connection in Taiwan and the Nation-Building Forum were among those who attended the court.
Attorney Tsai Shang-hua (蔡尚樺) said that the injunction application was made for two main reasons: First, the amendment process was not transparent and was based on the decisions of a few elitist educators and consultants; and second, the new content would not be suitable for use at school.
Tsai said that according to legal procedure, a judge would review the documents filed with the injunction and could order a hearing, before which the ministry would not be able implement the curriculum changes.
Taiwan Government Party Chairman Huang Kuo-hua (黃國華) said the curriculum changes are an attempt by the KMT government to marginalize Taiwanese culture and history, and to eradicate people’s Taiwanese identity.
“It is an act of resistance against the KMT for students and society to take up this protest, as the government is ramming its pro-China policy down people’s throats,” Huang said. “I am deeply moved by the actions of students to resist the government’s attempt at brainwashing. Our lodging of the injunction can provide a shield to buttress the students’ actions.”
Former Taipei City councilor Chen Shu-hua (陳淑華) said that the ministry appointed only pro-Chinese academics to make the changes, which brought about the input of Sino-centric viewpoints.
The changes are “historical revisionism” at its worst, Chan said.
TNP Chairman Tsua Gim-liong (蔡金龍) said the protests against the changes are to make it loud and clear to the world that Taiwanese do not want to be ruled by China.
The actions are an expression of self-determination by Taiwanese, which are to eventually bring about an independent and democratic nation, Tsua said.
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