A parade marking the 40th anniversary of the Kaohsiung Incident was held in the city yesterday to commemorate the sacrifices of people who fought for the nation’s democracy, freedom and human rights.
The Kaohsiung Incident, also known as the Formosa Incident, refers to a police crackdown, under the then-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) regime, on a rally held by Formosa Magazine and opposition politicians on Dec. 10, 1979, to mark Human Rights Day.
The event is generally recognized as an important turning point in the nation’s democratization.
Photo: CNA
Yesterday’s parade, jointly organized by the Defend Democracy Safeguard Taiwan Alliance, the Taiwan Society and several other local civic groups, marched around the roads surrounding the Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system’s Formosa Boulevard Station.
Former premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) — who provided legal counsel for several victims following the incident — and human rights activists from Taiwan and abroad attended the parade, which also featured speeches by a number of victims of the incident.
Although the incident is now a distant memory, the people of Taiwan today should cherish their hard-won democracy, freedom of speech and human rights, Chang said.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) took part in the parade briefly before heading to another event.
Other participants included representatives from Amnesty International, and human rights activists Klaus H. Walter from Germany, and Masahiro Watarida and Takayuki Munakata from Japan.
The parade concluded with a prayer led by pastor from the Presbyterian Church.
Presidential Office Secretary-General Chen Chu (陳菊) took part in the prayer, expressing gratitude for living through that era as it has made her life more meaningful.
She also thanked the attorneys who defended for the victims, and the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan and several human rights groups who helped victims of the incident.
Chen was among eight people, including veteran activist Shih Ming-te (施明德) and former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮), who were tried in a military court and given sentences ranging from 12 years to life in prison for their involvement in the rally in 1979. Forty-three other people were tried in civilian courts and given two to seven-year sentences.
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