2-28 Peace Park
Encyclopedia
228 Peace Memorial Park is a historic site located south of Ketagalan Boulevard
in the Zhongzheng
district of Taipei
, Taiwan
. The park is home to the Taipei 228 Memorial Museum, housed at the site of a former radio station that operated under Japanese and Kuomintang rule. The park contains a number of memorials to victims of the 228 Incident
of 1947, including the Taipei 228 Memorial that stands at the center of the park. The National Taiwan Museum
stands at the park's north entrance. The park also features a bandshell and exercise areas.
In 1930 Taiwan's Japanese authorities established a radio station at the site. The station initially housed the Taipei Broadcasting Bureau, an arm of the Government-General Propaganda Bureau's Information Office. The following year the Taiwan Broadcast Association was formed and given responsibility to broadcasts island-wide. The Taihoku Park radio station became the center of broadcast activity for the Association.
The park was renamed Taipei New Park in 1945 by the Kuomintang
authorities who replaced the Japanese at the end of the second world war in 1945. They renamed the broadcasting agency the Taiwan Broadcasting Company. The station became the primary broadcast organ of the Kuomintang government and military.
In 1947, a group of protesters, angry over a brutal police action against Taiwanese civilians, took over the station and used it to broadcast accusations against the Kuomintang government. The action formed part of a chain of events now referred to as the 228 Incident
. A subsequent, more severe crackdown by the Nationalist government restored the station to Kuomintang control and ushered in Taiwan's period of White Terror
. Two years later the Kuomintang lost ground in the Chinese Civil War
and its leaders retreated to Taiwan. Concerned to establish themselves as China's true national government in exile, they renamed the bureau the Broadcasting Corporation of China
(BCC).
The Taipei City government took over operation of the radio station building when the BCC relocated in 1972. City officials made it the site of the Taipei City Government Parks and Street Lights Office.
As Taiwan entered its modern democracy period in the 1990s, the reforms of President Lee Teng-hui
invited free discussion of Taiwan's past. For the first time the 228 Incident of 1947 was officially acknowledged and its significance openly debated. In 1996 the Taipei City government designated the former radio station building a historical site. The building was made the home of the Taipei 228 Memorial Museum and the park was rededicated as 2-28 Peace Park.
Ketagalan Boulevard
Ketagalan Boulevard is located in Zhongzheng District in Taipei, Taiwan, between the Presidential Building and the East Gate . The length is 400 m. There are ten lanes for two-way traffic, and no traffic islands.-History:...
in the Zhongzheng
Zhongzheng
Zhongzheng District is the home of most of the national government buildings of the Republic of China. This includes the Presidential Office, the Executive Yuan, the Control Yuan, the Legislative Yuan, the Judicial Yuan, and various government ministries...
district of Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
. The park is home to the Taipei 228 Memorial Museum, housed at the site of a former radio station that operated under Japanese and Kuomintang rule. The park contains a number of memorials to victims of the 228 Incident
228 Incident
The 228 Incident, also known as the 228 Massacre, was an anti-government uprising in Taiwan that began on February 27, 1947, and was violently suppressed by the Kuomintang government. Estimates of the number of deaths vary from 10,000 to 30,000 or more...
of 1947, including the Taipei 228 Memorial that stands at the center of the park. The National Taiwan Museum
National Taiwan Museum
National Taiwan Museum , established in 1908, is the oldest museum in Taiwan. It was set up by the colonial government during Japanese rule in Taiwan. It is located in Taipei.- History :Established in 1908, the museum is the oldest in Taiwan...
stands at the park's north entrance. The park also features a bandshell and exercise areas.
History
The park, designed by Taiwanese architect, Tsu-Chai Cheng, was established in 1908 as Taihoku Park during the Japanese colonial period. It was the first European-style urban park in Taiwan, placed on the grounds of the Colonial Governor's Office (today's Presidential Office Building).In 1930 Taiwan's Japanese authorities established a radio station at the site. The station initially housed the Taipei Broadcasting Bureau, an arm of the Government-General Propaganda Bureau's Information Office. The following year the Taiwan Broadcast Association was formed and given responsibility to broadcasts island-wide. The Taihoku Park radio station became the center of broadcast activity for the Association.
The park was renamed Taipei New Park in 1945 by the Kuomintang
Kuomintang
The Kuomintang of China , sometimes romanized as Guomindang via the Pinyin transcription system or GMD for short, and translated as the Chinese Nationalist Party is a founding and ruling political party of the Republic of China . Its guiding ideology is the Three Principles of the People, espoused...
authorities who replaced the Japanese at the end of the second world war in 1945. They renamed the broadcasting agency the Taiwan Broadcasting Company. The station became the primary broadcast organ of the Kuomintang government and military.
In 1947, a group of protesters, angry over a brutal police action against Taiwanese civilians, took over the station and used it to broadcast accusations against the Kuomintang government. The action formed part of a chain of events now referred to as the 228 Incident
228 Incident
The 228 Incident, also known as the 228 Massacre, was an anti-government uprising in Taiwan that began on February 27, 1947, and was violently suppressed by the Kuomintang government. Estimates of the number of deaths vary from 10,000 to 30,000 or more...
. A subsequent, more severe crackdown by the Nationalist government restored the station to Kuomintang control and ushered in Taiwan's period of White Terror
White Terror
White Terror is the violence carried out by reactionary groups as part of a counter-revolution. In particular, during the 20th century, in several countries the term White Terror was applied to acts of violence against real or suspected socialists and communists.-Historical origin: the French...
. Two years later the Kuomintang lost ground in the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
and its leaders retreated to Taiwan. Concerned to establish themselves as China's true national government in exile, they renamed the bureau the Broadcasting Corporation of China
Broadcasting Corporation of China
The Broadcasting Corporation of China , BCC, is a broadcasting company in the Republic of China. It was founded as the Central Broadcasting System in Nanjing in 1928.-History:...
(BCC).
The Taipei City government took over operation of the radio station building when the BCC relocated in 1972. City officials made it the site of the Taipei City Government Parks and Street Lights Office.
As Taiwan entered its modern democracy period in the 1990s, the reforms of President Lee Teng-hui
Lee Teng-hui
Lee Teng-hui is a politician of the Republic of China . He was the 7th, 8th, and 9th-term President of the Republic of China and Chairman of the Kuomintang from 1988 to 2000. He presided over major advancements in democratic reforms including his own re-election which marked the first direct...
invited free discussion of Taiwan's past. For the first time the 228 Incident of 1947 was officially acknowledged and its significance openly debated. In 1996 the Taipei City government designated the former radio station building a historical site. The building was made the home of the Taipei 228 Memorial Museum and the park was rededicated as 2-28 Peace Park.
Cultural references
- The park provides a primary setting for Pai Hsien-yungPai Hsien-yungKenneth Hsien-yung Pai , born July 11, 1937) is a writer who has been described as a "melancholy pioneer." He was born in Guilin, Guangxi, China at the cusp of both the Second Sino-Japanese War and subsequent Chinese Civil War...
's renowned novel Crystal BoysCrystal BoysCrystal Boys is a novel written by author Pai Hsien-yung and first published in 1983 in Taiwan. In 1988, this novel went into circulation in China; its French and English translations were published in 1985 and 1989...
.