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DPP celebrates 16th anniversary

Yesterday at Taipei's Grand Hotel, founding members of the DPP, including the party's Chairman Chen Shui-bian, center, Chiou I-jen, left, Chang Chun-hsiung, second from left, Su Chen-chang, right, and Frank Hsieh, second from right, light a torch and shout slogans to celebrate the 16th anniversary of the party's establishment. PHOTO: LU CHUN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES

On the eve of the DPP's 16th anniversary, party chairman President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday paid tribute to those who had helped found the party and vowed the party would stick to its goals and lead Taiwan into a prosperous future.

Chen, along with hundred of founding members of the party, returned to the Grand Hotel, where the party was launched, to celebrate its 16th birthday.

"The birth of the DPP did not occur by chance, rather it was built on the blood, tears and lives of those who came before us," Chen said.

"The party's achievements today have to be attributed to all Taiwanese because with their Taiwanese feet, they have walked their liberal, democratic and peaceful Taiwanese way. In the days to come, the party will assume more historic responsibilities and guide Taiwan into a brighter future."

Chen said that the choice of the Grand Hotel to celebrate the anniversary was of special significance because it was where the founders of the party first gathered to launch it, despite the risk of arrest and persecution.

The formation of political parties was illegal at the time the DPP was founded.

Around 250 founding members, many of whom had been persecuted for their political beliefs during the decades of KMT one-party dictatorship, attended the tea party yesterday.

Many of them have become top governmental officials, including National Security Council Secretary-General Chiou I-jen (邱義仁), DPP Secretary General Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄),Taipei County Commissioner Su Chen-chang (蘇貞昌) and Kaohsiung City Mayor Frank Hsieh (謝長廷).

Paying his utmost respect to these members, Chen said that "there would be no DPP without these political dissidents and founding members, and Taiwan would have no democratic achievements without the DPP."

President Chen recalled the day when the party was founded on Sept. 28, 1986, in violation of martial law, which was not abolished until the following year.

Chen said he was absent at the founding ceremony because he was in jail, but he was elated upon hearing the news because he had long worked for the founding of a new party.

Council for Hakka Affairs Chairwoman Yeh Chu-lan (葉菊蘭), the widow of a political dissident, pointed out that as a ruling party, the DPP has never forgotten the hardship with which democracy was brought about in Taiwan

"The existence of political victims has served the major driving force for the DPP to move forwards," she said.

Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕), Yeh's late husband, was a dauntless independence advocate who died on April 7, 1989, by self-immolation as police attempted to arrest him.

At the end of the celebration, Chen lighted a torch and passed it to Lee Ying-yuan (李應元), the party's candidate in December's Taipei mayoral election, and DPP city councilors in an effort to boost their popularity.

Today the party will hold a one-day athletic event at a stadium, where Chen and "No. 1 substitute chairman" Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) will lead officials in a run.

It will be the first time for a party to celebrate its establishment with an athletic event where high-ranking officials are expected to demonstrate their athletic prowess.
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