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Updated Thursday, February 19, 2009 9:36 am TWN, The China Post news staff

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Keep the 2-28 holiday

On Saturday, February 28th, Taiwan will commemorate the “2-28 Memorial Day” in remembrance of those who suffered and died under the then-authoritarian Kuomintang (KMT) military government. The holiday is heavy with symbolism. The day symbolizes an apology. It symbolizes a clean break from the heavy-handed, undemocratic positions of past authorities. Most of all, the 2-28 Memorial Day symbolizes a pledge to never again allow fear to rule.

The 2-28 Incident refers to a period of political violence that threatened to tear the young republic apart. On February 28th, 1947, an anti-government uprising of civilians clashed with government forces. The coup gained momentum as civilian groups organized and almost succeeded until government troops began massive crackdowns on March 8th with lethal force. Rebellion leaders were targeted, but many of the thousands of victims were also unarmed citizens, some even students. This dark era of Taiwan's past marked the beginning of the White Terror, which led to political assassinations of both Taiwanese and Chinese citizens who were considered a threat to the one-party government. Martial law ended in 1987, but wounds were already sown deep in Taiwan's society, and have yet to heal to this day.

For some, the 2-28 Memorial is a bitter pill to swallow. Some argue that without the admittedly tough pacification of separatists, the island would have been easy prey for communist China. Others point out that in addition to keeping Taiwan safe from the red menace, the economic and other positive developments that Chiang Kai-shek and the old KMT brought to Taiwan outweighs the bad.

It's always disingenuous to judge the past according to today's standards, but what occurred during the 2-28 Incident was immoral at best, even by war-time standards. President Lee Tung-hui apologized on behalf of the KMT in 1995, and established the following year a memorial park and the national holiday. It is now accepted by almost all that a tragedy took place. Most also accept that the KMT has tried to make amends. By recognizing the 2-28 incident, the nation is on the right path to reconciliation.

The proposed cancellation of the 2-28 holiday by KMT legislator Wu Yu-sheng should thus be rejected. Wu says he objects to the day off, not the symbolism of reconciliation. In this case, however, the productivity gain of an additional business day is overshadowed by the real risk of marginalizing this nation's best effort to unite its people. The 2-28 Memorial Day serves not only as a reminder not to commit past wrongs, but also a commitment to an enlightened future. Isn't that worth just one day out of a year?

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