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US congressmen mark
anniversary of 228 Massacre
By William Lowther / Staff Reporter in Washington
Two US congressmen issued statements on Capitol Hill on Tuesday to mark the 65th
anniversary of the 228 Massacre.
Representatives Robert Andrews, a Democrat, and Scott Garrett, a Republican,
made a plea in the Congressional Record for their colleagues to join them in
commemorating ¡§this tragic chapter in Taiwan¡¦s history.¡¨
Andrews said that freedom was ¡§not negotiable,¡¨ adding that he hoped the
massacre would inspire Taiwanese ¡§in their struggle for full independence,
international participation and for the continued enhancement of the mutual
relationship between Taiwan and the US.¡¨
Garrett added that at least 18,000 people lost their lives during the 228
turmoil.
He said that over the next half-century, the Taiwanese democracy movement paved
the way for Taiwan¡¦s ¡§momentous transformation from a dictatorship under the
Chinese Nationalists [Party (KMT)] to a thriving and pluralistic democracy.¡¨
Formosan Association for Public Affairs president Mark Kao (°ªÀsºa) thanked the
congressmen for their support and used the occasion to attack former premier Hau
Pei-tsun (°q¬f§ø) for alleging in an opinion piece in the Chinese-language United
Daily News last week that ¡§only¡¨ 500 people lost their lives in the massacre.
¡§It is outrageous that a former high government official still denies that the
228 Massacre took place,¡¨ Kao said. ¡§It is equivalent to a denial of the
Holocaust in World War II.¡¨
He said President Ma Ying-jeou (°¨^¤E) should condemn Hau¡¦s remarks ¡§in the
strongest possible terms.¡¨
¡§Ma needs to release the many documents that are still kept in the archives of
the military and secret police agencies,¡¨ Kao said. ¡§Taiwan¡¦s free and open
society needs to squarely face the horror of the atrocities committed 65 years
ago. The truth and reconciliation process has just begun.¡¨
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