President Tsai Ing-wen has paid her respects at the National Revolutionary Martyrs’ Shrine in a ceremony marking Taiwan’s Armed Forces Day.
September 3 is Taiwan’s Armed Forces Day and coincides with the country’s Victory over Japan Day, signaling the end of the Second World War.
Taiwan’s government holds a memorial service at the shrine in Taipei twice a year, in spring and fall.
The highly ritualized ceremony ends with the president leading the assembly in making three bows in respect to the deceased.
After the ceremony, President Tsai expressed her deepest condolences to the relatives of the dead.
A smaller ceremony also took place at the martyrs’ shrine in Taitung County, where local authorities paid respects to two recently deceased fighter pilots. Chu Kuan-meng and Pan Ying-chun passed away in separate non-combat related accidents in the past year.