TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) was confronted by a group of protesters as he delivered a speech at a ceremony commemorating the 76th anniversary of the 228 Massacre at Taipei’s 228 Peace Park on Tuesday (Feb. 28).
Toward the tail end of his speech, Chiang said, "As mayor of Taipei, I sincerely apologize for the pain caused by the seizing cigarettes incident," a reference to the 228 Massacre in which up to tens of thousands of Taiwanese were killed by Kuomintang (KMT) soldiers under the regime of Chiang's great-grandfather Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石). However, before he could continue speaking, several protesters ran toward the podium shouting "murderer" and carrying white banners that read "kneel down and apologize."
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The first of the protestors was immediately shoved to the ground by security personnel. Others were intercepted and pulled away by security staff.
Chiang halted his speech and looked over his shoulder, before eventually finishing his remarks. After the protesters were wrestled away from the podium, they moved to the surrounding area and continued to hold up the white banners and continually shouted "Murderer, kneel down and apologize!"
(CNA photo)
The male and female protestors are a group of college students who are engaged in social movements, reported EBC News. The Facebook page called "The Powerless" posted a statement Tuesday afternoon addressed to Chiang which read: "Since you want to become a descendant of the Chiang family, you have a greater responsibility to reflect on, review, and restore the damage caused by the past dictatorship. Don't become the strongest and most vital symbol of authoritarianism."
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BREAKING Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an was just heckled by a large group of protestors at the 228 memorial event in the capital. Chiang claims to be the great-grandson of Chiang Kai-shek, who ultimately signed responsible for the 228 Incident and the March Massacre. pic.twitter.com/9Ga4uub36c
— David Demes 戴達衛 (@DemesDavid) February 28, 2023
