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Inside Taiwan’s Political Purgatory: 228 Monument and assassination plot (Part 5 of 20)


Tze-Tsai Deh, designer of the 228 Massacre Monument and plotter against Chiang Ching-kuo

 


 

One of the many interesting people in Taiwan working for independent national status is Tze-Tsai Deh, the designer of the striking 228 Massacre Monument.

Deh moderated a recent question and answer session about America’s failure to protect human rights in Taiwan and gladly shared with us the meaning of the 228 Massacre Monument to him. The landscape architect also shared with us another role in history, as a plotter against Chiang Ching-kuo, a former dictator of the Republic of China in-exile.

“I was 11 years old when the 228 Massacre occurred in Taiwan, and not allowed by my parents to go out to the street where I lived, doors and windows of most households were shut tight. I went through the Kuomintang educational system from the primary school to the university.”

“When I graduated from the University, I was asked by the head of the architecture department to come back to work as a teaching assistant after I served the military service, which I did, but after two weeks I was asked to leave the job. I found out later the reason was because I once refused to join the KMT party.”

“I left Taiwan in 1962 for the United States with a feeling of relief to be able to get away from Chiang Kai-shek’s dictatorship.”

“At Pittsburgh I read such books as Poverty in America and Formosa Betrayed. In 1963 I joined a Martin Luther King, Jr. rally in Washington, D.C. and heard the famous speech, “I Have A Dream.” I then started to identify myself as Taiwanese and was eager to see Taiwan become an independent nation. I joined United Formosans for Independence.”

“While the 1960’s were turmoil years for democratic countries in Taiwan the situation was different. Taiwan had been under the White Terror of Chiang Kai-shek and his son Chiang Ching-kuo. Both father and son were responsible for the bloody killings and imprisonment of innocent Taiwanese. The Taiwanese culture, language, and human rights were ruthlessly suppressed. Chiang Ching-kuo had prepared to take over from his father the dictator when he was invited to the United States in 1970.”

“Among the overseas Taiwanese the thought of killing Chiang Ching-kuo was widespread. By then I was the general secretary of World United Formosans for Independence but began to plan an assassination without consulting the group. A friend in Louisiana supplied me with the pistols at my home in Queens. Then I talked to Peter Huang, a graduate student at Cornell University and my brother-in-law, he agreed and supported the plan.”

“Chiang Ching-kuo arrived in Los Angeles on April 18, 1970, there was a protest rally organized by the World United Formosans for Independence and another one in Washington, D.C. that I commanded. On April 24th we held a last meeting to discuss how to carry out the assassination in detail. Peter volunteered to do the shooting because he was still single and the sacrifice and the loss would be less. I was stationed at the entrance to the hotel and would pass out leaflets.”

“A black sedan arrived at high noon, it stopped in front of the entrance. Chiang Ching-kuo stepped out of the car and was immediately surrounded by police and agents who walked him to the circular door. When he was close to the door, Peter fired a shot.”

“At the split moment he fired, Peter’s hand was hit by a city policeman next to him and the bullet flew over Chiang Ching-kuo’s head by about 20 centimeters. The police grabbed Peter’s arm and pushed him to the floor, A second policeman jumped on him. I tried to reach Peter but was knocked unconscious by a police stick. Blood was all over my face, Peter and I were arrested, the assassination attempt had failed.”

Peter Huang pleaded guilty to attempted murder and Tze-Tsai Deh was convicted and both served time in New York jails before jumping bond and fleeing the United States. Both had equally arduous journeys with Huang exiled from Taiwan for 26 years. Huang would become the head of Taiwan’s branch of Amnesty International.

Tze-Tsai Deh began a long odyssey that had him jailed in the United States, in Europe and Taiwan. Treated variously as an attempted assassin, a fugitive, and as an illegal immigrant the architect was finally back in Taiwan, in a Republic of China in-exile jail. Sentenced for illegal entry to Taiwan, the imprisoned designer worked on an entry to the 228 Massacre Monument contest from jail.

“During the design process I was arrested but I had asked a university classmate of mine, Mr. Wang, to help. I worked on the prison floor and Mr. Wang from his office in Taipei. Mr. Wang visited me in prison and we discussed the design.”

“The basic design element is the cube with six equal square sides and 8 corners. We let the cube stand on a corner to emphasis the Taiwanese people want to stand on their own feet and be an independent country. A single cube cannot stand alone, but three can to symbolize that by working together we will succeed. The main body of the design has four cubes to represent four ethnic groups on Taiwan.”

“The peaceful water of the monument is to soothe suffering souls. The low sounds of the water falling into the well sounds like people in mourning. The hand imprints signify the many who place their hands on the monument well in deep grief and sorrow, day and night.”

Inside Taiwan's Political Purgatory: Next, the role of the Central Intelligence Agency

 

http://www.examiner.com/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~topic744893-...

 

REF:

 

Examiner Special Report: Inside Taiwan’s Political Purgatory (Part 1 0f 20)
http://www.examiner.com/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y2010m3d31-E...

Inside Taiwan's Political Purgatory: American arrival and Formosa's betrayal (Part 2 of 20)
http://www.examiner.com/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y2010m4d1-Am...

Inside Taiwan’s Political Purgatory: 228 Massacre scars Taiwan history (Part 3 of 20)
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y20...

[GlobalForumIntl] Inside Taiwan's Political Purgatory: 228 Massacre Museum (Part 4 of 20)‏
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y20...

Inside Taiwan’s Political Purgatory: 228 Monument and assassination plot (Part 5 of 20)
http://www.examiner.com/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y2010m4d6-In...

Inside Taiwan's Political Purgatory: CIA documents tell secret story of betrayal (Part 6 of 20)
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y20...

Inside Taiwan’s Political Purgatory: American responsibility for status quo (Part 7 of 20)
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y20...

Inside Taiwan's Political Purgatory: “Please help us” (Part 8 of 20)
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-34331-Taiwan-Policy-Examiner~y20...

 

 

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