The Transitional Justice Commission plans to complete its survey of roads named “Zhongzheng” (中正) — a name adopted by Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) — by September, it said on Saturday.
It wants to establish the number of roads nationwide with names symbolic of the nation’s authoritarian past, as well as the history behind the names.
The survey is being conducted in accordance with the Act on Promoting Transitional Justice (促進轉型正義條例), which establishes the illegality of symbolism commemorating the authoritarian period in public spaces, and requires such symbols to be removed, it said.
Photo: Chen Yu-fu, Taipei Times
The authoritarian-era Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government credited Chiang as the “savior of the Chinese race” and renamed numerous roads Zhongzheng as a way of having his name regularly spoken by the public, the committee said.
One of the most notable examples is Pingtung’s main street.
The road had long been nicknamed Coconut Grove Avenue (椰林大道) for the trees that line it on both sides, which give it a tropical island feel, but renaming it was done to evoke images of the then-president, the commission said.
Several other main roads around the nation were similarly renamed, including those in what is now New Taipei City’s Sinjhuang District (新莊), Houlong Township (後龍) in Miaoli County and Magong on Penghu, it said.
The government does not have complete records on the renamed roads, so the commission said it asked outside experts to assist it.
The commission last year began a survey of national parks to determine the number and location of statues of Chiang, and the road survey is a continuation of those efforts, it said.
Information provided by Minister of National Defense Yen De-fa (嚴德發) showed that there are 152 Chiang statues in the three branches of the military’s various facilities, it said.
Meanwhile, the issue of the huge statue at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei has temporarily been put on hold, it said.
The Veteran Affairs Council and the Ministry of National Defense have expressed conservative positions on proposals to remove the statue, and a cross-departmental meeting would be convened to discuss it, the commission said.
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
A former officer in China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming (李曉明), who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. “What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too,” Li told CNA in a May 22 interview, ahead of the massacre’s 36th anniversary. “If Taiwanese students or
RSS