The Transitional Justice Commission on Thursday called on the government to reopen an investigation into the death of democracy activist Chen Wen-chen (陳文成) four decades ago.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of Chen’s mysterious death, and a new investigation would not only help to solve the puzzle, but also serve to uphold transitional justice in Taiwan, the commission wrote on Facebook.
The commission, which re-examined Chen’s case last year after legal files were declassified, said it has sent letters to the Ministry of Justice and the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office detailing the importance of opening a new probe.
The commission said in a report that there was a possibility that Chen had been murdered by Taiwanese authorities in 1981, when the nation was under martial law.
Chen was found dead near a library at National Taiwan University, shortly after he arrived in Taiwan on vacation from the US, where he was a mathematics professor at Carnegie Mellon University and had been active in promoting Taiwan’s democratic movement.
The day before his body was found, Chen was summoned by the Taiwan Garrison Command, a state security force that has since been disbanded, and his death, at the age of 31, was widely seen as government reprisal for his activism overseas.
The commission also called on the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), which ruled the nation at the time, to release its files related to Chen’s death.
The KMT declined to comment on the commission’s request.
The Dr Chen Wen-chen Memorial Foundation also issued a statement, saying that the government has a responsibility to uncover the truth.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as