“The community that resists”, put forward by Ma Ngok, is being dealt a body blow.

Participating in the pro-democracy primaries turned “colluding to subvert state power”, the 47 defendants were sent to purgatory on earth during the bail hearings that lasted for consecutive days and nights. Being detained, attending tedious hearings, starving and feeling dispirited, they had to give evidence and convince the court they would never violate the national security law again. Having obviously rendered up the principle of “presumption of innocence”, and yielding to the ambiguity of the draconian law, the judge appointed for cases relating to national security tenderly and sympathetically let the mentally frail defendants put forward narratives about how they objected to violence and laam chau(assured mutual destruction) in the past, and their promise not to run in elections and issue political commentaries anymore, and even their promise to quit political parties, as if they chanced upon a piece of driftwood in a shipwreck, or they were survivals from an earthquake buried under debris crying for help towards a light source. Being put in such a bitter state, they were not pleading for mercy between a conviction and a jail sentence, but just striving for a brief while of freedom before trial. While the blue-ribbon definitely burst into giggles, and derided them online, the yellow-ribbon were concerned about such a posture in front of the powerful regime devastating people’s morale, despite showing understanding for them being under immense pressure.

This mass round-up is likened to the “Formosa Incident” in Taiwan by quite a number of people. How did Ng Sin-kai, Shih Ming-te, Yao Chia-wen and Chen Chu compose themselves and contend on strong grounds for what was right before a court martial? The fact is that lacking sleep, being tortured and beaten, and under death threat for a long period of time, the defendants of the Formosa Incident were tricked into writing a confession against their conscience. In his book The Trial in Jingmei , Yao Chia-wen recollects the times he was summoned in to a secret trial: “Downhearted with low morale, I appeared to be a yes man in court.” Later on his wife reminded him during a session with him: “Not contending for what is right, and lacking the will to fight, you defendants do not act like political figures, and let down the people out there.” Chiang Kai-shek made public the trials in the court martial with confidence just because the defendants were tortured into collapsing .

According to the citations in the book The Best Moments in Taiwan, the one who really lifted Yao Chia-wen from depression was an inmate, a young fisherman. He said to Yao: “All of you are our heroes. We respect all of you for your courage and vigor. You must be outstanding in court.” Before every trial, he rooted for him: “Go, go on trial, argue against them…you don’t have to wash the dishes today, I’ll do it for you. You don’t have to wash your underwear today, I’ll do it for you.” Encouraged, Yao had his morale recovered, made eloquent arguments in court, and said in his closing statement: “The defendants plead not guilty to the charges made by the prosecutor, but only admit that we are readily dedicated to Taiwan’s democratic movement and Formosa; the defendants ask for an acquittal, but do not make a plea for abatement from penalty.”

The trial for the Formosa Incident let the masses understand protesters’ beliefs and their affection towards Taiwan, which battered down the illegitimacy of the military rule. When the defendants were sentenced to life or long-term imprisonment, the public rose together in unison to become a “community that suffer”, who encouraged and tempered one another. When their family members and defense counsels run in elections in place of them, the masses turned their respect for them into donation and ballot. One of the reasons why the Formosa Incident is so touching is the brutal murder of the family members of Lin Yixiong, one of the defendants, which took place when he was being detained. A few years later, when running in an election, his wife wrote: “They could bereave me of my mother-in-law and daughters, and deprive my husband of freedom, but they could not take away what I aspire to, and bar me from loving Taiwan!” This was tenacity coming out of tribulations.

Though it is definitely a blessing that Gwyneth Ho Kwai-lam safeguarded the pride of the movement during the bail hearings, a lot of people shed silent tears when seeing defendants go into a coma for being exhausted, a defendant’s mother cry bitterly and loudly in excessive grief outside the court, defendants’ wives and children pray to God for them coming home as soon as possible. Bit by bit, drib by drib, a “community that suffer” is getting into shape one step at a time – showing respect for defendants’ families, subscribing to defendants’ Patreon accounts, buying rice coupons at AbouThai, and writing letters to defendants to root for them and other comrades. Let’s see if wisdom and bravery will come out of tribulations.

(Chan Kin-man, founder of Occupy Central Movement, writing warrior, nature lover)

Click here for Chinese version

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