Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Gao Jyh-peng’s (高志鵬) proposal to redesign the nation’s currency to replace the images of Republic of China founding father Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) and former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) has sparked a heated public debate.
Gao on Thursday last week wrote on Facebook that while preparing hongbao (紅包, red envelopes) for the Lunar New Year holiday, some of his friends complained that they were tired of “looking at the faces of Sun and Chiang,” which are featured on the NT$100 bill, as well as the NT$50, NT$10, NT$5 and NT$1 coins.
“Banknotes and coins are not only the nation’s legal currency, they also represent our national identity and culture,” Gao wrote, adding that Sun and Chiang are “heroes only to some people.”
Gao said that after the holiday, he would propose legislation for the establishment of a “national currency design committee,” which would be tasked with creating new designs for the currency that are more in line with the nation’s current state of affairs.
The public should be allowed to participate in the process to ensure that there is a public consensus on the new designs, he said.
Amendments to the Central Bank Act (中央銀行法) are needed to fulfill this goal, Gao said.
Independence activists, academics and pro-localization groups have for many years called on the government to design new currencies, saying the images of Sun and Chiang are reminiscent of the White Terror-era and the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) dictatorship, during which Taiwanese faced harsh repression.
National Taipei University of Education professor Lee Hsiao-feng (李筱峰) said that KMT officials had painted Sun as the “nation’s founding father” by creating a personality cult and anoiting him like a deity.
“During his lifetime, Sun was never referred to as the ‘founding father’ and there is still an ongoing debate about his political career and place in history,” Lee said.
The issue has also stirred up heated discussion on the Internet, with many voicing support for Kao’s proposal.
Some said that having the image of a dictator who was mainly responsible for White Terror atrocities and the 228 Incident on the nation’s coins is like post-war Germany honoring Adolf Hitler.
Others suggested using the images of prominent Taiwanese artists, musicians, writers and social reformers instead.
However, some netizens said the DPP government should focus on improving the economy, instead of wasting energy on designing a new currency.
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