Lien clan visits grandmother's grave
In a respite from politics, he pays respects at his Xian birthplace
Lien Chan concluded a visit to his birthplace in Xian yesterday with an emotional stop at the grave of his grandmother.
His visit to the site, which the Kuomintang chairman said was his duty as a grandson, was the first since he left the mainland as a young child and marked a brief respite from politics on his historic trip.
'My purpose today in Xian is to pay respects to my grandmother. Over the past 60 years, I have mourned from thousands of kilometres away. Today, I was able to visit her grave for the first time with my family. My emotions are of my solemn reverence,' Mr Lien said before leaving for Shanghai.
Mr Lien and his entourage travelled to the Qingliang temple to pay his respects to his grandmother, Shen Ao , in Dongjiang village, on the outskirts of the ancient capital.
Shen, a native Taiwanese, died in Xian in 1945 when the Lien family was living in the city to escape Japanese colonisation of the island.
According to Taiwanese media reports, a family friend found her grave in 1991 and the site was rebuilt in 2002 with money provided by Mr Lien.
With a Buddhist monk by his side and Buddhist music playing in the background, Mr Lien, together with his wife, two sons, and a daughter, first viewed the site, marked by a marble tombstone inside a garden enclosed by a grey brick wall. He then placed flowers and fruit at the gravestone. Holding incense, he and his family members kowtowed three times. Facing the grave, he addressed his grandmother in the Minnan dialect.
'Granny, I have finally come to Xian to visit you,' he said, before introducing his family.
He then walked to the nearby temple where he was led by the monk to chant prayers. He gave money to the monk and thanked her for taking care of the grave. Before leaving, he and his family returned to the site and again bowed three times.
A visibly moved Mr Lien said that politics had prevented him and his family from visiting the grave in the past.
'As a result of the country's domestic and cross-strait situation, no one from the Lien family could come here. So today at this place, we feel deep passion, with our hearts very moved and sentimental.'
He also later explained that his grandmother had been a devout Buddhist and that he spoke in the Minnan dialect to her because that was the only language she had been able to speak.
Mr Lien said there were no plans to send her remains to Taiwan, as was requested in the will of his grandfather, Lien Heng.
During the trip, more than a hundred people from Dongjiang village came to see Mr Lien and his entourage, with locals saying the government had recently paved a new road for today's visit.
Back at their hotel, Mr Lien and his family met with an elderly cousin, Zhao Rumei . They had not seen each other for 60 years.
