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EDITORIAL:
Celebrating Deng Nan-jung
Twenty-four years ago on April 7, Freedom Era Weekly (自由時代週刊) editor-in-chief
Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕) sacrificed his life to defend freedom of expression.
Protesting the then-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration’s repression
and the sedition charges it filed against him for publishing a draft “Taiwan
Republic Constitution” in the magazine’s December 1988 issue, Deng set himself
ablaze in his office in Taipei as heavily armed police attempted to break in and
arrest him following 71 days of self-imposed isolation.
Deng’s heroically tragic death planted a seed of democracy in the hearts of
Taiwanese that subsequently paved the way for the social movement two years
later that called for the removal of Article 100 of the Criminal Code, which
allowed charges of sedition to be filed against people suspected of plotting to
overthrow the KMT regime.
Regrettably, other than commemorative speeches delivered by Deng’s widow, Yeh
Chu-lan (葉菊蘭), and some pan-green politicians reaffirming their support for
Deng’s struggle at each anniversary of his death, Deng’s name is rarely
mentioned, let alone remembered among many young Taiwanese today.
It is therefore comforting to see that a student organization at National Cheng
Kung University named the 02 Group (零貳社) — a phonetic translation of “protest”
in Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese) — will, on its own initiative, hold a
candlelight vigil on Sunday evening in memory of the sacrifice made by Deng and
to pledge their pursuit of the democratic causes and values that Deng laid down
his life for.
The initiative undertaken by the young 02 Group members to pay homage to the
late democratic activist deserves to be applauded and certainly ought to put
Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Management Office to shame for being insensitive to
history by holding an inappropriate design competition recently aimed at
celebrating the life and marriage of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and his wife.
It is also encouraging to see the Yilan County Government following in the
footsteps of the Greater Tainan Government, which last year took the lead in
designating April 7 as the city’s “Freedom of Expression Day,” announcing on
Tuesday that it will also designate April 7 as its “Freedom of Expression Day.”
However, the Yilan County Government added that it will hold human
rights-related lectures for the county’s residents, in a bid to deepen their
concepts and understanding of democracy.
Without Deng’s sacrifice, the nation would be unable to enjoy the freedom of
expression and democracy it has today. Continuous efforts are needed to ensure
that the values of democracy, human rights and freedom of speech are passed on
generation after generation. To avoid any regression of the nation’s hard-earned
democracy, the public needs to be constantly reminded of the blood, sweat and
tears shed by Deng and other democratic pioneers.
It may be fair to say that the local governments’ designation of April 7 as
“Freedom of Expression Day” is not solely to honor Deng, but rather a pledge to
support the fight to uphold democratic values.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has taken pride in his administration’s efforts to
protect human rights by touting how it was under his watch that the nation
signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 2009.
Should the Ma government follow Greater Tainan and Yilan County by designating
April 7 as the nation’s “Freedom of Expression Day,” in Deng’s honor, Ma’s
commitment to human rights and democracy would come across to Taiwanese as more
convincing.
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