Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers yesterday called on state-owned enterprise employees unhappy with the government's recent name-change campaign to attend a demonstration aimed at preserving the status quo of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall.
The government has decided to make major changes to CKS Memorial Hall, including renaming it the Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall, removing statues of former dictator Chiang Kai-shek, and probably tearing down the walls surrounding the park.
It is part of the government's drive to replace the China-related symbols of the old regime with distinct Taiwanese emblems and to redefine the role of the late dictator.
The changes to the names of state-run enterprises caused a stir among some workers who said that the move would cost their companies unnecessary expenditure.
"We welcome state-run enterprise employees to join the protest on March 31. We have to do something to show our determination to defend the Republic of China," said KMT Legislator John Chiang (
The KMT lawmakers initially planned to stage a protest march from Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall to CKS Memorial Hall on Saturday.
"We decided to postpone the plan for two weeks so that more people can take part in the event," KMT Legislator Justin Chou (
Chou said that participants in the protest would assemble in Ketagalan Square and then link hands to surround the CKS Memorial Hall as a gesture of defiance.
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