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Independence groups plan 228
procession
By Lee Hsin-fang and Jake Chung / Staff reporter, with staff
writer
Members of the Taiwan National
Alliance and other pro-independence groups hold a press conference in Taipei
yesterday to raise public awareness about the mass killings that took place in
March 1947 following the 228 Incident.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
Announcing plans for a procession to be
held on Thursday in Taipei, pro-independence groups yesterday said they hoped to
pass on the memories of the 228 Massacre so that similar mistakes would never be
repeated.
The 228 Incident refers to the violent suppression of anti-government uprisings
by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) that began on Feb. 28, 1947 — 16 months
after the end of Japanese colonial rule.
Between 18,000 and 30,000 people, the majority of them Taiwanese and in
particular leaders and intellectuals, are estimated to have been killed.
The Taiwan National Alliance (TNA) and the Taiwan 228 Care Association have
together organized a procession to commemorate the 66th anniversary of the 228
Incident. TNA convener Yao Chia-wen (姚嘉文) said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)
Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) were
both invited.
Yao said that Taiwanese at the time were too trusting of China and had too much
faith in the government prior to the incident.
“It is a lesson we have taken to heart,” Yao said.
Speaking about the youth of today, Yao said that many felt like the incidence
should be confined to history and that people should look forward instead of
constantly digging up past ghosts.
“It is my opinion that we must acknowledge both the future and the past,” Yao
said, adding that the commemoration of the incident was important to demonstrate
that Taiwanese would never want to be governed by another foreign government.
Meanwhile, Taiwan Association of University Professors (TAUP) deputy chairman
Shiu Wen-tang (許文堂) said that the incident was an important historical event,
adding that discussion of the massacre had been forbidden for more than 40
years.
If the 228 Memorial Day is just a day off for citizens, then there has been no
transitional justice, Shiu said, adding that in effect the incident has not yet
come to a conclusion.
According to the International Center of Transitional Justice, transitional
justice is a set of judicial and non-judicial measures — including criminal
prosecution, reparation, truth commissions or institutional reforms —
implemented in order to redress the legacies of major human rights abuses.
The government’s current investigation into the incident is too shallow, Taiwan
228 Care Association president Chen Yi-shen (陳儀深) said, adding that currently
only the victims of the incident are known, while none of the perpetrators have
been named.
This is letting the perpetrators of the incident off the hook, Chen said, adding
that without a list of perpetrators, there can be no transitional justice on the
issue.
Independent Youth Front (IYF) representative Lan Shih-po (藍士博) said the IYF was
an important asset of Taiwanese society, adding that when the 228 Massacre
occurred, many young intellectuals had been at the forefront of the event.
“Their courage should be recognized, and we should look to them as role models,”
Lan said.
Victims of the incident will start the procession at Yongle Market at 2:28pm.
They are due to march past the original scene of the crisis at the Tien Ma Tea
Room, the Taiwan Tobacco and Wine Board and Taipei Railway Station, before
stopping at Liberty Square, where IYF will host a concert.
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