Forty years ago this week, Taiwan witnessed one of the pivotal moments on the country’s path to democracy: the Formosa Incident. That’s a reference to a government crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations that took place on December 10, 1979 in the southern city of Kaohsiung.
At the time, Taiwan was under martial law and one-party rule. Protesters were calling for human rights and freedom, and demanding an end to martial law.
Eight democracy activists were court-martialed. Among them: Annette Lu, who later became vice president of Taiwan. Another of the eight, Chen Chu, was imprisoned for over six years, and would go on to become mayor of Kaohsiung. Today she is the secretary-general of the Presidential Office.
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) held an event on Monday to observe the anniversary. At the event, Chen said the Formosa Incident is only a beginning as Taiwan will face more challenges in the future.
Former Premier William Lai was also present at the event. Lai, who is now the DPP’s vice presidential candidate, urged the public to safeguard democracy and stand in unity.
“We must cherish the hard-won democracy even more. Given China’s relentless suppression of Taiwan and the worsening the situation in Hong Kong, we must stand in unity to safeguard our sovereignty and protect our democracy so that Taiwan will not see a repeat of the unfortunate Formosa Incident, the 228 Incident and the White Terror [period]," said Lai.
The 228 Incident of 1947 and the White Terror period from 1949 to 1991 are both sad chapters in Taiwan’s history, in which many were killed, persecuted and wrongly convicted.