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04/05/2009: "MEMORIAL HALL, TAIPEI and a short HISTORY LESSON"
Not all locals are happy with this building, a point that took me a long time to realize. In order to fully appreciate the details one needs to know what was happening in SE Asia during the years after WW2.
There was a French war in Vietnam, another in Korea, communists were the bogey men, since replaced by 'terrorists' and Taiwan (then called Formosa) was having serious problems too. Not a good mixture.
In Taiwan the new masters were a tough bunch straight out of China after fighting two wars - one against Japanese invaders the other amongst themselves. For a while the civil war amongst themselves stopped and they joined forces to fight against the Japanese. When that was won they started their previous fight with each other again.
Meanwhile, someone had given the US backed 'good guy' mob in China free rein of Taiwan. It was not official and hence confusion exists today as to who 'owns' Taiwan.
When the so-called good guys started to lose the fight in China (along with some trickery to make it seem more critical) the leader took off for Taiwan with about 3 million soldiers and their families, plus all the loot they could carry.
The 'yanks' kept backing this so called good guy for years with billions in cash and equipment. He kept up the rhetoric about invading China again but life in Taiwan in his 30+ houses and bullet-proof Cadillacs was very comfortable. It wasn't going to last forever.
During this the locals in Taiwan (a previous Japanese colony) were given very rough treatment - as one might expect would happen. The more the locals complained the worse it became for them. Thousands died and went missing.
History records this period as white terror - martial law that existed for 38 years. An ugly world record.
So why are half the locals displeased with such a grand building today? The origin is mainland Chinese architecture I suppose.
There is also the point of 'personality cult' existing of a previous dictator which does not go down well anywhere in the world today. Some say the memorial should represent democracy in Taiwan - the first Chinese country to allow voting.
Time marches on. We can learn from history though.
The real player in this history is the wife of the dictator. Madame Mei-ling Soong, wife of CKS.
She was educated in Georgia USA with her two sisters, all from a wealthy family.
The Soong sisters spoke with a southern USA drawl that charmed newspaper owners and politicians.
The wife of the dictator of Taiwan even addressed the Congress of the United States in a speech that drew a standing ovation in the late 1940's.
Until about 1975 the world saw Taiwan as "China" while the mainland virtually did not exist. China had shut the doors to the world while they cleaned the place up - especially of opium addiction.
Richard Nixon did a secret deal with China to drop recognition of Taiwan and recognize mainland China as the real China.
The payoff? Get American troops out of Vietnam and give Taiwan to China.
The Americans did create the Taiwan Relations Act whereby they pledged to defend Taiwan against any invasion, and sell weapons for the island to defend itself.
There is a lot more to this story. It is constantly changing. I trust for the better, many fear the opposite.
Australian newspapers don't seem interested in showing the many aspects of this story. The American viewpoint, both Taiwanese view points and of course the bully in the whole scenario, the Peoples Republic of China, the communist state that wants the last say.
The good news, communists are now our friends. Tell that to the ghosts of the diggers who died in Vietnam. And while we are at it, let's apologize to Vietnam for interfering in their civil war. Have a look at www.dienbienphu.org and see how the French Foreign Legion got wiped out.
