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Spirit of Deng Nylon
needs revival
By J. Michael Cole 寇謐將
In troubled times, it is always useful to turn our heads toward the past for
guidance. Not only does it teach us many lessons, but it can also serve as a
reminder that while the present often looks bleak, hopeless even, other
generations went through similar trials and prevailed. The past can therefore be
a reflection of hope. It can also serve as a source of inspiration, especially
the heroes who fought the darkness and helped improve our lot.
Taiwan’s history has many such heroes: leaders, survivors and those who gave
their lives so that others could lead better, freer lives. One person in
particular comes to mind for the present times, and that man is Deng Nylon
(鄭南榕), or Deng Nan-jung, the editor-in-chief of Freedom Era Weekly (自由時代週刊), who
on April 7, 1989, self-immolated at his office near my home for the cause of
liberty.
What made Deng an extraordinarily powerful symbol was not simply that he fought
for his ideals, or that he made the ultimate sacrifice as a spear to gut state
repression. Heroic though such acts may have been, the true power of Deng as a
man was his ability to transcend politics and ethnicity.
As he famously said: “I am a Chinese descendent. And I support Taiwan
independence.”
His words, which he often repeated at rallies, sent a powerful — perhaps even
undefeatable — message to those who would seek to enslave people in Taiwan and
China that being Taiwanese had nothing to do with DNA, ethnicity or even place
of birth. For Deng, being Taiwanese was far greater than that, and went well
beyond the cynical use that politicians have made of Taiwanese independence in
recent times: It was an inclusive force, pitting those who believe in liberty
against those who would deny it to others for the sake of power and fortune.
As I type this, I am listening to a wonderful hip-hop album by the Taiwanese
band Kou Chou Ching, some of whose members I have had the honor of meeting in
recent weeks at various protests in Taipei. The reason I mention them is because
their art epitomizes the essence of Taiwan; it blends modern sounds with
traditional instruments, and mixes Mandarin, Hakka, Hoklo (also known as
Taiwanese), Aborginal languages and English.
All those voices and the many guest artists who lent their talent to the project
are united in telling Taiwan’s story to the world, and in the process they are
helping define what it means to be Taiwanese in the 21st century. Other musical
genres, and many movies, also successfully depict the rich amalgam of cultures
and languages that makes Taiwan unique and precious.
Such inclusiveness is also what is most threatening to the forces across the
Taiwan Strait — and here in Taiwan — that indefatigably endeavor to destroy
Taiwan’s democracy and existence as a distinct society.
For years, the Chinese Communist Party and those within the Chinese Nationalist
Party (KMT) who seek “reunification” against the wishes of the majority of
people in Taiwan, have benefited from the ethnic divide that has kept Taiwan
disunited and fighting against itself. The only way Taiwan will succeed in
defeating such predations is if its people manage to erase that artificial
divide and unite as a force for freedom against that of repression.
Sadly, Deng is often forgotten, except on every April 7, when commemorative
ceremonies are held (I strongly encourage readers to visit the museum that was
created in his name, which is located in his former office on Freedom Lane; the
charred remains are a moving sight).
However, his powerful spirit carries on, and I have seen it time and again in
the young Taiwanese activists and those who support them against the
orchestrated assault on their freedoms, liberties and the country they call
home.
Increasingly, protesters are multi-ethnic, polyglot and are sacrificing their
own welfare for the sake of others who, in the old days, would have been
considered “the enemy” or “the occupation.”
I see it in “ethnic Taiwanese” who fight and risk arrest to defend the rights of
an elderly “Mainlander.” I see it in Chen Wei-ting (陳為廷), one of the student
leaders and a Hakka, speaking Taiwanese by the roadside with an old female
supporter. I see it in Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆), another leader, paying his respects to
Deng on April 7, and the many, many others whose identity as a Taiwanese, in the
purest and noblest sense of the word, is unassailable and indivisible.
The times call for an end to the fissiparous nature of Taiwanese politics, to
the artificial divides created by politicians and the media that keep Taiwan on
its knees.
The times call for unity, for everybody who calls Taiwan his or her home to
shine a bright light into the gathering darkness that threatens to swallow their
country.
J. Michael Cole is a deputy news editor at the Taipei Times.
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