The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) should participate in transitional justice instead of opposing it all the time, Transitional Justice Commission researcher Tseng Chien-yuan (曾建元) said yesterday at a discussion hosted by the Taiwan New Century Foundation to mark International Day of Democracy on Saturday.
Former South African president F.W. de Klerk of the National Party pushed for the abolition of the apartheid system and won the Nobel Peace Prize with Nelson Mandela, Tseng said.
If the KMT approves of how South Africa approached reconciliation, it should participate in transitional justice instead of constantly opposing it, he said.
Photo: Chen Chih-chu, Taipei Times
Tseng also said that even now many people in Taiwan are “politically nostalgic” and miss former presidents Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國).
South Korea has long since removed its statues of dictators, yet Taiwan is still discussing whether its statues of Chiang Kai-shek should be removed, said Korean Studies Academy chief executive officer Rick Chu (朱立熙), who was also at the event.
Statues of former South Korean president Syngman Rhee were removed when he stepped down in 1960, Chu said, adding that former South Korean president Kim Dae-jung passed special legislation to establish agencies, such as the National Human Rights Commission of Korea and the Truth Commission, to protect the nation’s democracy.
Taiwan’s democracy is threatend by fake news created by China, he said.
The government should legislate an act for freedom of speech, and prohibit speech that extols the Chinese Communist Party made by the Chinese Unity Promotion Party, the Patriot Association and others, Chu said.
Taiwan cannot allow China to affect the morale of Taiwanese, he added.
Whether people are allowed to fly the Chinese national flag is not a matter of freedom of speech, said Leung Man-to (梁文韜), a professor in the Department of Political Science at National Cheng Kung University.
Western countries would not allow the Nazi flag to be flown in the streets, he added.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
Snow fell on Yushan (Jade Mountain, 玉山) yesterday morning as a continental cold air mass sent temperatures below freezing on Taiwan’s tallest peak, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Snowflakes were seen on Yushan’s north peak from 6:28am to 6:38am, but they did not fully cover the ground and no accumulation was recorded, the CWA said. As of 7:42am, the lowest temperature recorded across Taiwan was minus-5.5°C at Yushan’s Fengkou observatory and minus-4.7°C at the Yushan observatory, CWA data showed. On Hehuanshan (合歡山) in Nantou County, a low of 1.3°C was recorded at 6:39pm, when ice pellets fell at Songsyue Lodge (松雪樓), a
NO SHAME IN RETREAT: Hikers should consider turning back if the weather turns bad or if they do not have sufficient equipment, the Taroko park headquarters said Two people died of hypothermia over the weekend while hiking on Hsuehshan (雪山), prompting park authorities to remind hikers to bring proper equipment and consider their physical condition before setting out in the cold weather. Temperatures dropped over the weekend, bringing snow to high altitudes in Shei-pa National Park. One hiker, surnamed Lin (林), who on Friday was traveling with a group of six along the Hsuehshan west ridge trail, lost consciousness due to hypothermia and died, the Shei-pa National Park Headquarters said. On Saturday, another hiker, surnamed Tien (田), in a group of five on the southeast of the west
RSS