President-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday said that she would push to make April 7 national “freedom of expression day” to remember the death of democracy activist Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕) 27 years ago.
“I remember that I made the promise right here last year that I would make April 7 ‘freedom of expression day’ when I am elected president,” Tsai said in a speech at a ceremony to commemorate the 27th anniversary of Deng’s death at his burial site in New Taipei City’s Jinshan District (金山). “I would like to reiterate my promise that, after I take office, I will ask government agencies to work on setting up a freedom of expression day.”
“I hope that when I stand here again on April 7 next year, all Taiwanese would remember the day not only as the day of Deng’s sacrifice, but also as Taiwan’s ‘freedom of expression day,’” Tsai said.
Photo: CNA
Tsai said that she will be inaugurated as president in little over a month, adding that she knows that she would not have had such an opportunity without the efforts made by democracy activists like Deng.
Born in 1947, Deng was a dissident against the then-Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) authoritarian regime and was involved in various campaigns, including those calling for Taiwanese independence, for the recognition of the 228 Incident, and for freedoms and human rights.
Deng founded Freedom Era Weekly in 1984 to fight for “100 percent freedom of speech.” He was charged with sedition on Jan. 21, 1989, for having printed a draft “Republic of Taiwan Constitution” in 1988 written by then-World United Formosans for Independence chairman Koh Se-kai (許世楷). Deng refused to appear in court and barricaded himself in the magazine’s headquarters. On the 71st day of his self-imprisonment, police broke down the door and entered the magazine’s offices. Deng locked himself in the editor-in-chief’s office and set himself and the office on fire, dying in the blaze.
Accompanied by Legislative Speaker Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) and Deng’s widow, Yeh Chu-lan (葉菊蘭), who was a former presidential office secretary-general, Tsai paid her respects to Deng.
Kaohsiung, Tainan and the counties of Yunlin, Yilan and Chiayi were the first local governments to name April 7 as “freedom of speech day” in 2013.
Taichung and Pingtung followed suit last year, while Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) announced in December last year that the capital city would follow suit this year.
The street on which the magazine’s office was located was named “Freedom Lane” in August 2012 by former Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌), in memory of Deng.
Additional Reporting by CNA
LOUD AND PROUD Taiwan might have taken a drubbing against Australia and Japan, but you might not know it from the enthusiasm and numbers of the fans Taiwan might not be expected to win the World Baseball Classic (WBC) but their fans are making their presence felt in Tokyo, with tens of thousands decked out in the team’s blue, blowing horns and singing songs. Taiwanese fans have packed out the Tokyo Dome for all three of their games so far and even threatened to drown out home team supporters when their team played Japan on Friday. They blew trumpets, chanted for their favorite players and had their own cheerleading squad who dance on a stage during the game. The team struggled to match that exuberance on the field, with
UPDATED TEST: The new rules aim to assess drivers’ awareness of risky behaviors and how they respond under certain circumstances, the Highway Bureau said Driver’s license applicants who fail to yield to pedestrians at intersections or to check blind spots, or omit pointing-and-calling procedures would fail the driving test, the Highway Bureau said yesterday. The change is set to be implemented at the end of the month, and is part of the bureau’s reform of the driving portion of the test, which has been criticized for failing to assess whether drivers can operate vehicles safely. Sedan drivers would be tested regarding yielding to pedestrians and turning their heads to check blind spots, while drivers of large vehicles would be tested on their familiarity with pointing-and-calling
Whether Japan would help defend Taiwan in case of a cross-strait conflict would depend on the US and the extent to which Japan would be allowed to act under the US-Japan Security Treaty, former Japanese minister of defense Satoshi Morimoto said. As China has not given up on the idea of invading Taiwan by force, to what extent Japan could support US military action would hinge on Washington’s intention and its negotiation with Tokyo, Morimoto said in an interview with the Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) yesterday. There has to be sufficient mutual recognition of how Japan could provide
A Taiwanese man apologized on Friday after saying in a social media post that he worked with Australia to provide scouting reports on Taiwan’s team, enabling Australia’s victory in this year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC), saying it was a joke and that he did not hold any position with foreign teams or Taiwan’s sports training center. Chen Po-hao (陳柏豪) drew the rage of many Taiwan baseball fans when he posted online on Thursday night, claiming credit for Australia’s 3-0 win over Taiwan in the opening game for Pool C, saying he worked as a physical therapist with the national team and
RSS