An increasing number of young Taiwanese are taking an interest in the life and tragic end of Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕), the executive director of the foundation named after the late democracy activist said yesterday on the 24th anniversary of Deng’s death by self-immolation.
The mood at the Deng Liberty Foundation, located on the recently renamed Freedom Lane in Taipei, was one of introspection as groups of people yesterday came to pay their respects to the former editor-in-chief of Freedom Era Weekly (自由時代週刊). Facing charges of sedition for his calls on the government to protect freedom of expression, Deng set himself ablaze in his office on April 7, 1989.
Ten years later, the same office, which by then had been turned into a human rights memorial hall, was opened to the public, showcasing a collection of photographs of Deng and other activists who fought for freedom in Taiwan under martial law. Hauntingly, Deng’s office remains as it was found after he committed the ultimate sacrifice, a reminder of a not-so-distant past.
Photo: J. Michael Cole, Taipei Times
Visitors yesterday honored the man by depositing red roses outside the charred room. A single white scarf, left behind by a Tibetan organization, graced the entrance to Deng’s study.
Addressing a group of several dozen visitors, foundation chief executive Tsao Chin-jung (曹欽榮) said he had observed in recent years a marked change in the interest among young people to learn more about Deng’s life and sacrifice.
He said the foundation was receiving more requests from students to visit it, to deepen their understanding of the man, whose Mainlander background had not diminished his commitment to Taiwan, as former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), like Deng a former political prisoner, once said of him.
Thanks to the Internet and social media, interest in Deng’s life seems to be seeing a revival, Tsao said, adding that most young visitors today already had a fair understanding of Deng’s life and works.
Just as this correspondent was entering the memorial hall, he ran into Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆), a student leader who played a major role leading the anti-media monopoly movement against the attempted — now failed — acquisition of Next Media by a consortium that included Want Want China Times Group chairman Tsai Eng-meng (蔡衍明), whose close ties with the regime in Beijing have made him a controversial figure in the nation’s media environment.
Earlier in the day, Lin and several young activists had joined others during a ceremony at the Jinbaoshan Cemetery in New Taipei City (新北市) to honor Deng.
Young people have also sought other means to remember Deng. National Cheng Kung University’s 02 Group, whose members have pledged to continue to pursue the values that Deng sacrificed his life for, was scheduled to hold a candlelit vigil last night in memory of Deng.
Young Taiwanese were not the only ones who showed up to honor Deng. Following Tsao’s presentation at the foundation, a young Chinese student, who is studying at National Taiwan University, also made a brief speech.
Carrying a satchel he had just purchased from the foundation, the student said there were reasons to worry about Taiwan’s future, and he pointed to corruption within the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) as the main problem.
Taiwan does not exclude the possibility of having formal diplomatic relations with countries that also have formal ties with China, regardless of Beijing’s stance, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) said on Sunday. There was speculation in 2012 that Honduras was attempting to have simultaneous diplomatic relations with Taiwan and China, an idea that then-minister of foreign affairs David Lin (林永樂) rejected. Honduras severed formal ties with Taiwan on Sunday morning after establishing diplomatic relations with Beijing. President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) administration has taken a more practical approach to relations with like-minded countries since assuming government in 2016. Previous administrations took the
Seven senior faculty members, including the principal, of a high school in Taichung were temporarily suspended from their jobs on Friday, pending an investigation by the Taichung Education Bureau into alleged bullying and abuse that led to the suicide of a student last month. The city’s education officials were too slow to suspend those involved, the student’s father told a news conference on Wednesday, at which Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chang Liao Wan-chien (張廖萬堅) and members of the Humanistic Education Foundation were also present. The boy had been a good student and a high achiever during elementary and junior-high, and had
Taiwan would have established formal relations with Argentina long ago if not for China’s interference, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Alexander Yui told US-based Spanish-language online news outlet Infobae in an interview published on Tuesday. Beijing has left behind a string of unfulfilled promises in Latin America, including pledges to build the Grand Nicaragua Canal and airports, docks, ports and industrial zones in El Salvador, he said. Meanwhile, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Mexico and other countries enjoy pragmatic and improving relations with Taiwan based on cooperation on the economy, culture, technology and science, he said. While Taiwan is “happy to live and let live,”
WASHED ASHORE: Of the 16 bodies discovered along Taiwan’s west coast this month, two were Vietnamese and five were Taiwanese, coast guard officials said Minister of Justice Tsai Ching-hsiang (蔡清祥) said that he has instructed prosecutors and maritime authorities to launch investigations after 16 bodies were found along Taiwan’s west coast this month, amid speculation that they were victims of smuggling or human trafficking rings. Coast Guard Administration (CGA) officials said the bodies, most of which had washed ashore, were found by coast guard personnel and local residents along the coastline from Keelung to Kaohsiung. Thirteen of the bodies are male and three are female, the CGA said, adding that items found on the bodies indicate that two of the men were Vietnamese, while three men
RSS