10 Taiwanese protesters charged with vandalising Chiang Kai-shek’s tomb
Activists indicted for ‘damage and disrespect’ after pouring paint on former leader’s coffin on anniversary of nationalist massacre
Protesters who vandalised Chiang Kai-shek’s tomb in Taiwan have been charged in a case that highlights divided opinion on how to deal with the island’s authoritarian past.
Ten people splashed red paint on the former Kuomintang ruler’s coffin in late February, on the 71st anniversary of a nationalist massacre estimated to have killed as many as 28,000.
The activists demanded the government erase all tributes to Chiang and his son, saying they were dictators who oversaw the decades-long “White Terror” political purge that saw thousands executed.
Taiwan has evolved into a fully fledged democracy since martial law was lifted in 1987, but it was only in December that a bill was passed to tackle the legacy of such injustices.
Chiang’s mausoleum in the northern city of Taoyuan has been closed to the public since the incident and the protesters were indicted on Tuesday for damage and disrespect of a public memorial.
