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Editorial: The warning of Hong Kong Formosa Trial | Apple Daily Hong Kong

蘋果日報 2021/03/09 09:31


By Li Ping
47 people were charged by the police on Feb. 28 with conspiracy to subvert state power for participating in or organizing the primary election of the Legislative Council. The day coincided with the anniversary of the Feb. 28 tragedy in Taiwan created by the Kuomintang (KMT) 74 years ago, therefore it is dubbed the Hong Kong 228. Regarding the history of Taiwan’s democratic movement, a comparison can be made with the Formosa Trial in the Formosa Incident. Although the Formosa Trial was an important turning point for Taiwan’s resistance to autocracy and path towards democracy, the Hong Kong 228 trial was a turning point from freedom to authoritarianism. That said, the impact of the Formosa Trial on Taiwan’s politics and culture, and the subsequent murders of the Lin family, Chen Wen-cheng, Chiang Nan (Henry Liu), and the self-immolation of Cheng Nan-jung, all hold significant inspiration and vigilance for Hong Kong.
Of the 47 pro-democracy activists accused of violating the National Security Law, only four have been released on bail thus far. The others are all suffering from imprisonment before trial, including 11 people who were granted bail originally by chief magistrate Victor So, but were immediately returned to prison with the Department of Justice’s review. This is the great irony of the presumption of innocence and human rights protection clauses in the National Security Law. It is also a landmark event of the deprivation of Hongkongers’ right to vote and judicial human rights.
The Chinese National People’s Congress (NPC) is about to amend the Basic Law annex to change Hong Kong’s electoral system, such that it will cooperate with the National Security Law to completely eradicate the foundation of Hong Kong’s freedom and democracy, and proceed towards the dictatorship during Taiwan’s mobilization and rebellion period. The Hong Kong 228 trial was part of the boost by the CCP and Hong Kong commie efforts for the NPC’s to amend the Basic Law. Its scale, degree of political manipulation, and violations of judicial human rights are comparable to the Taiwan Formosa Trial, which was all to suppress democracy in the name of the rule of law.
On Dec. 10, 1979, after an objection by the police to the application of commemorating World Human Rights Day, Formosa Magazine went ahead and held a protest rally, which ended in a gathering ban and the invocation of martial law. The authorities violently dispersed the crowd, and a police-civilian conflict broke out. The following day, the authorities began a large-scale raid and announced that 152 people were involved in the Formosa Incident. As of Feb. 20, 1980, the Taiwan Garrison Command arrested the Kaohsiung Eight, including Shih Ming-teh, for rebellion. Another 37 were also indicted in ordinary courts. This was the beginning of the Formosa Trial. There were 45 people, two fewer than in Hong Kong 228.
During the Formosa Trial, the 45 people underwent fatigue interrogation, were not allowed to eat, and were even beaten. After the trial had begun and under the pressure of international public opinion, the authorities eventually agreed to allow Taiwanese media to cover the interrogation process and report the defendants’ statements. On Apr. 18, all 45 people were found guilty. Among them, Shih Ming-the was sentenced to life imprisonment. Similar scenes from the Formosa Trial are now replaying in Hong Kong, and whether the subsequent events and political and social implications will follow as well is of particular concern.
One thing that should be highlighted is that the societal backgrounds of the Hong Kong 228 trial and Taiwan’s Formosa Trial are two worlds apart. Taiwan was still in a period of mobilization and rebellion, that is, under martial law. The bans on parties and reporting had not been lifted, and there was no pro-democracy camp. All dissidents were known only as non-party individuals. Hong Kong did not have bans on parties nor reporting, and traditional democrats and localists were all allowed to participate in politics openly. Freedom of the press and freedom of speech have not yet been completely snatched, this is why Hongkongers are still enjoying more human rights than people in Taiwan at that time. However, after the Formosa Trial and Hong Kong 228 trial, the contrast between democracy and human rights between the two places is being reversed.
Due to the international attention on the Formosa Trial, KMT was under pressure, and that triggered changes within Taiwan’s political ecology. On the one hand, the Formosa Trial led to a political alliance between the defendants and the defense lawyers. Defendants like Shih Ming-the, Tsu Hsin-liang, Annette Lu, and Lin Yi-hsiung, and lawyers such as Frank Hsieh, Su Tseng-chang, and Chen Shui-bian later became the core members of the DPP, even more united in fighting for democracy and freedom, and gradually gained the support of many Taiwanese. This finally ended Taiwan’s martial law, and achieved democratic elections and party rotation.
On the other hand, after the Formosa Incident, Taiwan’s democratic movement still paid a heavy price in the finale of the madness of the authoritarian regime. Among them, the massacre of the Lin family (When Lin Yi-hsiung was imprisoned, his mother and twin daughters were murdered at home) on Feb. 28. 1980, the Chen Wen-cheng murder in 1981, the murder of Chiang Nan in 1983, and the Cheng Nan-jung immolation in 1989 were all events that stemmed from the suppression of democrats and assassinations of people in exile and supporters.
What is disturbing is that after the National Security Law and changes in the electoral system, Hong Kong will essentially enter a period of reporting ban and party ban. The 228 trial is only one obstacle in Hong Kong’s transition from freedom to authoritarianism, and in order to go from authoritarianism to freedom, how much more calamities and bloodsheds will there be? May the heavens have mercy, and protect our city and our people.
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