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Piece of Mind
Weblog 4U2C
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Mon, 28 Feb 2005
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 February 28, 1947 - Taiwan's 2-28 Memorial Day
Today is a national holiday in Taiwan. Schools and
businesses are closed. But it is not one of the
many holidays shared with the mainland due to a
common Chinese cultural history. Two two eight, as
it is referred to here, is unique to Taiwan and is
a testament to the desire of all Taiwanese to live
in a free and fair society. To understand the
events that took place it is necessary to know
what
was happening in Taiwan – then known more commonly
in English by the name Formosa – after the
surrender of the Japanese in 1945. Formosa
(Taiwan)
had been occupied by the Japanese since the end of
the Sino-Japanese war in 1895. Following their
surrender at the end of WWII Taiwan was returned
to
the Chinese government. At the time this was the
Nationalist Kuomintang party (KMT) being led by
Chiang Kai-Shek. The Nationalists were in control
of much of the mainland at this time but the fight
with the Communists had in many ways just begun
now
that the common foe, the Japanese, had been
defeated. In fact by 1949 one and a half million
mainland Chinese from many different provinces,
including around 600,000 soldiers, would be moving
to Taiwan permanently. But the story of 228 begins
a few years earlier. While Chiang was struggling
to
hold onto the mainland, he sent the cruel and
repressive Chen-Yi to serve as Governor. While the
Formosan’s had initially welcomed the arrival of
the Chinese troops and new governor it was not
long
before their happiness faded and they found
themselves under the thumb of a cruel and corrupt
government. On February 27th, 1947, a woman who
sold cigarettes on the street and another
by-stander were beaten to death by police for not
having a proper license to sell. This event became
the catalyst that sparked a demonstration the
following day. On February 28th around 2,000
people
gathered outside of the Bureau of Monopoly in
Taipei. Chen-Yi responded with machine gun fire,
killing many on the spot. Several days of dissent
followed. The Formosan’s, gathering mostly in
large
unarmed groups, were easy targets for the Chinese
soldier’s machine guns. Flyers, signed by Chiang
Kai-Shek, promising amnesty to leaders of the
movement if they came forward to discuss their
grievances were disseminated and dropped by
airplanes. Those who did come forward were
imprisoned or killed. Many who were imprisoned in
the following decades of martial law (known as the
White Terror) were not released until the 1980’s.
To this day the KMT and the military refuse to
offer up files which may incriminate those still
alive, or perhaps in order to protect those whose
historical image they wish to preserve untarnished
by the truth. But without a doubt it can be said
that the tragic events of 228 struck a chord in
the
hearts of all Formosan’s and solidified their will
to be a self-governing and free people. Fifty
years
later the differences between main-landers and
Taiwanese continue to diminish with inter-marriage
and time. Those sons and daughters born to the
soldiers and refugees of the mainland now speak
Taiwanese instead of their original provincial
dialect, and are having children of their own. A
thriving democracy, with all the privileges and
problems there of, now thrives on an island which
has spent most of its modern history under
oppression and occupation. It is no wonder that
228
has become a day of remembrance and hope for all
Taiwanese, and for anyone who hopes that the world
of our future can escape repeating the tragedies
of
the past.
Posted 00:32
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