Category: De-Chiangification & Name Rectification

I Did Not Know That

From Tuesday’s editorial in Taiwan’s China Post:

Chiang Kai-Shek fought for democracy.

Ah.  Just for the record, Chiang was re-elected president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) by the National Assembly in 1954, 1960, 1966 and 1972.

So…exactly who were his opponents in these elections?  What independent political parties did they belong to?  Were the people of Taiwan ever consulted on these votes?  And what was the fate of unfriendly media figures during these election cycles?

If there are serious answers to those questions, then I’ll admit Chiang fought for democracy.  Otherwise, I’ll keep in mind the example of Julius Caesar, who claimed to be savior of the republic, yet quickly accepted the post of dictator-for-life.

Here’s something else I didn’t know:

Chiang was supreme commander of the victorious Allied forces during WWII.

Critics and supporters alike can all agree that Chiang’s conception and execution of Operation Overlord was masterful.  Simply masterful.

Won’t Get Fooled Again

Taiwan’s China Post came out a few weeks ago against a referendum on Taiwan attempting to join the U.N. under the name, "Taiwan," saying the question is superfluous:

…everyone [in Taiwan] wants Taiwan to rejoin the United Nations, from which the representative of Chiang Kai-shek was ousted in 1971.  As far as the United Nations is concerned, the question of Chinese representation has long been settled.  In fact, the world body formally acknowledges Taiwan as a province of the People’s Republic of China.  As a result, if we want to accede to the United Nations, we have no alternative but to apply as Taiwan, which should be accepted by the world organization as an independent, sovereign state rather than a province of China. The people should not be asked to vote on an issue of whether their country should or shouldn’t try to acquire U.N. membership as ‘Taiwan.’ The answer is there before the question is asked.  [Emphasis added]

When the China Post says "everyone" here wants to join the U.N. as "Taiwan", the casual reader is liable to think that they include themselves in that number.  But if that were true, how can one explain their near-apoplectic response to the Chen administration’s efforts to add "Taiwan" to the names of state-owned enterprises?

In other words, how can the paper tell us with a straight face that they want to enter the U.N. under the name ‘Taiwan’, when only one or two months ago it was bitterly opposed to the creation of a Taiwan Postal Service?

The truth of the matter is that the China Post doesn’t want Taiwan to ever join the U.N. as ‘Taiwan’.  That would smack too much of independence for their Greater China sensibilities.  But rather than be men about that and admit it, they’d rather disingenuously claim that the result would be a foregone conclusion, and then call for a boycott of the referendum. That way, if enough of the electorate fails to vote, the initiative will go down in flames. Which is what they wanted all along.

Just remember that foregone conclusion the China Post talks about now. Because if the referendum fails,  the paper will do a pirouette and claim without embarrassment that it failed not because of the boycott they themselves called for, but because the "people" never wanted to join the U.N. as ‘Taiwan’ in the first place.

That’s the little game the China Post and Taiwan’s Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) played during the 2004 referendum.  It worked once, so why SHOULDN’T they try again?

This Is Not About YOU, John Chiang

Earlier this week, John Chiang, an illegitimate descendant of former Taiwanese dictator Chiang Kai-shek, launched a lawsuit over the dismantling of his grand-dad’s statue by the city of Kaohsiung:

"I can’t bear to see the statue of the late president being disassembled.  I demand Mayor Chen publish an apology in the islands three main Chinese-language newspapers and pay a symbolic NT$1 in compensation [for] the city’s rude behavior…"

"I shed tears when I saw on the TV that it (the city government) disassembled the [Chiang Kai-shek] statue into more than 200 parts * …"

The fact is that while John Chiang shed tears, others cheered.  I know of no moral calculus that says John Chiang’s displeasure must weigh more heavily than the approval of others.

There is, I believe, only one instrument with which the conflict between Chiang supporters and critics can be resolved:  Democracy. This is where Taiwan’s China Post gets their "Cultural Revolution" analogy all wrong.  Unlike Mao’s China, Taiwanese mobs are not  roaming the streets smashing Chiang statues.**  Instead, the people of Taiwan chose known anti-Chiang politicians to be their leaders, and those politicians are enacting that part of their program.  When pro-Chiang politicians are elected to executive positions, I will take that as evidence that the Taiwanese wish Chiang to remain in his place of honor.

Some might object that anti-Chiang politicians were elected for other reasons, pointing to poll numbers to support that claim.  Fair point, though I notice that Chiang defenders are not quite so confident about their numbers as to call for a democratic referendum on the issue.  Guess it’s easier to bluster about Chiang’s "solid support" in Taiwanese society than it is to risk a humiliating loss at the polls on the question.

* While it was initially reported that the Chiang Kai-shek statue in Kaohsiung was broken into 200 pieces, the correct number was quickly established to be 79.  For emotive purposes, John Chiang continues to use the inflated figure.

** There was however, one troubling case of arson directed against one of Chiang Kai-shek’s holiday villas recently, and it’s my hope that the perpetrator will be found and punished harshly.   De-Chiangification must take place under the rule of law and under democratic auspices, not according to the whims of individuals with butane lighters.

UPDATE (Apr 21/07):  The difference between John Chiang and Cho Seung-Hui’s grandfather could not be starker:

John Chiang: "I shed tears when I saw on the TV that [the city government]
disassembled [my grandfather’s] statue into more than 200 parts."

Cho Seung-Hui’s grandfather:  "Son of a bitch.  It serves [my grandson] right he died…"

The Lost Golden Age Of Dictatorship

The KMT worships a demon labeled, Despotism, Martial Law and White Terror, while saying, Oh, Those Were The Glorious Days.

(Cartoon from the Apr 2/07 ed of the Taipei Times.)

Pitiful, really.  From last Saturday’s pro-Chiang march:

The main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) staged a march in Taipei near the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon to protest a government campaign attacking the legacy of late President Chiang Kai-shek, 32 years after he died in 1975.

[…]

During the rally, former KMT chairman Ma Ying-jeou, who is considered the frontrunner in the 2008 presidential race, conceded Chiang had made errors, but told the protesters that historical figures must not be unfairly judged.

"No historical figures were perfect, and we could reassess Chiang’s legacy but must not deny all of his accomplishments," Ma said.

"He wasn’t a saint, he was like you and me and [could] make mistakes, which we will review," he said. "But don’t write him off completely because of them," Ma continued.

Now, I done some bad things in my time.  Never sentenced men that I knew were innocent to political prisons or death, though.  So in that sense, Chiang wasn’t EXACTLY like me.  And in all likelihood, he wasn’t like any of you, either.

A Taiwanese independence group held a less flattering protest at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial a day later, performing mock funeral rituals:

Traditionally, sealing the coffin — when family members hammer nails into the lid to seal it — is the last part of a funeral before burial.

Wang presented a sharp metal stake with a sign that read "Site for future Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall" and asked all participants to hammer it into the ground.  [Taiwan’s president is trying to rededicate the Chiang memorial as a Democracy hall – The Foreigner]

As he hammered, a member of the crowd shouted: "Let’s seal it so the evil spirit of Chiang Kai-shek will never be able to get out again!"

Undeterred, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) held yet another pro-Chiang rally a few days later, on the anniversary of the former dictator’s death.  "Destroy Taiwan independence" was one of their slogans.  (Given the party’s obstruction of the special arms bill, I’d say they’re doing a bang-up job at that.)

After the initial rally, the Taiwan News had some food for thought about one of Chiang’s reputed accomplishments:

The common myth that the  [KMT] takeover saved the Taiwan people from "the Chinese Communist bandit regime" [after World War 2] is merely a historical "what if" that excludes numerous other possibilities, such as United Nations trusteeship or the granting of independence to a government formed by the Taiwan people.

Precisely.  Though there is another, more depressing, possibility.  Had the KMT not come to Taiwan, the Taiwanese might have foolishly welcomed re-unification, even with the communists.  They did, after all, cheer during the early days of post-war re-unification, prior to the KMT’s depredations.  What really would have happened is unknowable, by both Chiang defenders and detractors.

The Taiwan News also described the KMT’s unhealthy nostalgia:

…the event’s real aim was to "review the good fortune and prosperity brought to Taiwan in the era of the two Chiangs [Chiang Kai-shek and his son, Chiang Ching-guo – The Foreigner]," according to KMT Acting Chairman Chiang Pin-kin.  Another KMT spokesman openly expressed the hope of restoring the "golden age" allegedly experienced by Taiwan in the 1950s and 1960s thanks to the "two Chiangs."

Chiang surely did SOME good for Taiwan, but in the final analysis, it doesn’t matter.  No democratic country ought to glorify former tyrants, build statues in their name, or speak of "golden ages" of dictatorship.  That’s bad – no, DANGEROUS – for that country’s democratic soul.  When certain parties in Taiwan make a fetish out of the "oneness of purpose" that existed prior to democracy, they shouldn’t be surprised when the youth of Taiwan subsequently begin forming Hitler fan clubs out of admiration for the even greater unity that existed in Nazi Germany.  For it is their example which leads the way.

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Tomb-Sweeping Day

The story of Keith Richards snorting his dad’s ashes with coke made the papers here, and just in time for Tomb-Sweeping Day.  Lordy-be.  I can only imagine what Taiwanese make of us Westerners after THAT little show of filial piety.

For those who don’t live in Taiwan, Tomb-Sweeping Day is a holiday set aside to pay obeisance at the tombs of one’s ancestors.  People typically trim away vegetation that has grown over family graves over the course of the year; in subtropical Taiwan this can entail quite a bit of work, particularly for children from urban centers who may’ve never handled a pruner or hedge-trimmer in their entire lives.  A good piece on Tomb-Sweeping Day holiday can be found here.

Joe Hung also wrote an interesting column on modern observances of this holiday.  I was unaware that the holiday used to be unfixed (the 15th Day of the Spring Equinox, so it fell on either Apr 5th or 6th).  It was fixed on Apr 5th by late Taiwanese dictator Chiang Ching-guo in order to honor his father, Chiang Kai-shek, who died on that day.  As part of a recent de-Chiangification campaign, it has been suggested that the holiday become unfixed again.

I don’t know if Tomb-Sweeping Day will be returned to its TRUE Chinese roots and become unfixed again, but I beg to differ with Dr. Hung on one point.  De-Chiangification is NOT de-Sinicization – unless one starts with the proposition that dictatorship is an inherent and essential part of Chinese-ness.

UPDATE:  The Taiwan News reports that Richards was joking about his dad’s ashes.

UPDATE (Apr 7/07):  Good pic of the day’s observances from Friday’s Taipei Times:

Taiwanese at a cemetery burning incense and paying obeisance to their ancestors.

Frankly, I’m a little surprised to see this picture at all.  Last time I showed some Taiwanese friends a couple pictures I’d taken of local tombs (mixed in with other photos – I’m not THAT morbid), they were horrified.  Said the ghosts were going to follow me now.

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And There’d Be Even MORE Tourists If It Were Dedicated To Mao Tse-tung

Tough to defend the existence of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall on moral grounds, so the latest argument is a naked appeal to economic self-interest.  From Sunday’s editorial in the China Post:

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall has become a tourist attraction that’s extremely popular with tourists, especially visitors from mainland China.  It contributes immensely to the development of Taiwan’s tourist industry.

The abolition of this historic site would deprive the island of a major tourist attraction and do tremendous harm to the lives of countless businesspeople who rely on this tourist center to make a living.

Making pilgrimages to monuments to authoritarianism is about the LAST thing that subjects of a communist state ought to be doing.  If Chinese tourists come to Taiwan, let them visit monuments showing Taiwan’s commitment to democracy instead.

Lenin’s Tomb is a pretty big tourist attraction too, but that’s entirely beside the point.  Bury the sonofabitch already.

Dealing With The Past

For some time now, I’ve been reflecting on the similar situation that Hungary, Estonia and Taiwan face in removing statues dedicated to communism / authoritarianism, but it took Dr. Keating to actually write about it.  Finding myself in such agreement, I had to search pretty hard to find ANYTHING to disagree with:

A side issue of the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial [relative to renaming it] is whether to tear down the walls.  A few extra gates could be built to ease access, but taking down the walls will serve no great purpose.

The rationale behind the proposal to tear down the walls was to reflect "democratic openness" in keeping with its new name (the Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall).  This initially seemed to me an exercise in overly esoteric symbolism, but a few days later, I changed my mind.  Instead of being a serious suggestion, the proposal should be viewed as a diversion (or perhaps an opening bid in a negotiation).  I mean, for days afterward, the big story wasn’t "Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall to be renamed", but "KMT vows to defend memorial walls".

Masterful.  And if the memorial IS renamed, President Chen ends up looking magnanimous when he says, "OK, you win.  The walls can stay."

Aside from that, there’s something Dr. Keating brought up that I wanted to elaborate a bit more upon:

…above Budapest, the Liberty Statue monument prominently stands on Gellert Hill overlooking the city and the Danube River.

This monument too has received its own rectification — a rectification of inscription.

Originally erected in 1947 by the conquering Russians, it used to bear the hypocritical inscription: "Erected by the Hungarian Nation in memory of the liberating Russian heroes." Some liberation!

The Hungarians quickly realized the destructive and oppressive nature of these heroes. In 1956 they rebelled and were severely put down.

Liberty Statue in Budapest, Hungary.

(Liberty Statue in Budapest, Hungary.  Image from Academic Programs International.)

Dr. Keating didn’t have space in a single newspaper column to flesh out the expression "severely put down".  I’ll retell but a single story that readers might not be familiar with:

When the Red Army rolled into Hungary in 1956, their tanks initially took relatively heavy losses against Molotov cocktails.  To prevent this, the Soviets did what anyone pupilled in the ethical school of Marx and Lenin would have done: they simply tied Hungarians to their tanks and used them as human shields against the flaming glass projectiles.

Some liberation, indeed.  Reckon I wouldn’t judge too harshly Hungarians if they busted a Red Army statue into a couple hundred pieces after hearing that some petty local magistrate wanted to present it as a token of eternal friendship to the Russians.

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Restorations

OK, I knew that the name of the Chiang Kai-Shek Airport was initially supposed to be the Taoyuan International Airport, and was only given that name because the dictator died.  So in a way, renaming it back to the "Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport" is only restoring it to what it should have been called in the first place.

But I didn’t know that the building of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall also usurped a previous plan:

In July 1973, ‘Taipei reading’ (volume 67) had an article about the project, ‘Ying-Pien New Community.’ The government originally planned to raise 1500 billion NTD to build a ‘modern business center’ across 62 acre area in Hsin-Yi Road. There would be five 18- to 50-level business buildings, three 24- to 30-level international hotels for tourists and apartments, four department stores, conference hall, world trade center, culture centers, and entertainment facilities. There would be transportation systems between buildings, and moving tracks for pedestrians. In the cover and content of this journal, we can see the scenographs, and all of them are towering glass-covering buildings. This project is full of the imagination of ‘modern and technology advance,’ and it was set to start the development in June, 1974. However, Chiang Kai-Shek died in 1975, and the plan was suddenly changed to use the land for Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall.

(from Chih-Hung Wang, via Global Voices Online)

Mischievous thought:  If the name of Taiwan’s main international airport can be restored, then why can’t the original vision for the memorial’s parcel of land be as well?  The Chinese Nationalist Party never ceases to claim that Chiang was the sole cause of Taiwan’s economic miracle, so what better monument could there be to such a man than a few 50-story skyscrapers?

Sprucing-Up The Place

Thursday’s Taipei Times displayed a front-page photo of the Presidential Office, with a potted plant set in a place formerly reserved for a portrait of Sun Yat-sen, the founder of the Republic of China.

Small potted tree in alcove reserved for Sun Yat-sen's portrait at top of stairs in Taiwan's Presidential Office.

(Photo from the March 15th edition of the Taipei Times)

A day later, an editorial in the China Post read, "DPP’s attempt to cut ties with China will backfire."

Much as I’d like to say they’re all wrong, I can’t.  Yes, I know why President Chen, a TAIWANESE nationalist, would wish to remove a symbol of CHINESE nationalism.  But replacing a picture of Sun with a PLANT?

That’s a slap in the face.  It needlessly mobilizes his political enemies, while antagonizing voters who straddle the fence.  When you’re engaged in a struggle with the Chinese Nationalists over the name of the Post Office and Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, why open another front?  Removing the "China" from the titles of the Taiwan’s Post Office and other state institutions is a worthy cause necessary for distinguishing this "China" from the REAL one.  And dismantling the cult of Chiang isn’t de-sinification; it’s democratization.

But near as I can tell, Sun Yat-sen, unlike Chiang, never hurt Taiwan.  In politics, you have to pick your battles, and I’m sorry to say, I have agree with the China Post when it says that Chen is over-reaching here.

Hope I’m wrong.

UPDATE (MAR 19/07):  A few townships controlled by the Taiwan’s Chinese Nationalist Party removed portraits of SITTING President Chen Shui-bian during the height of the anti-Chen protests in September / October 2006.

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