Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

The passing of US Senator Ted Kennedy on Aug. 25 brings back many memories of his actions in the late 1970s and early 1980s in support of Taiwan’s democracy.

The senator’s interest in Taiwan was prompted by contact with the Taiwanese-American community in the mid-1970s. His leadership was most prominent after the 1979 Kaohsiung Incident, when the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) authorities arrested virtually all leaders of the democratic opposition. His office often and openly expressed his concerns to the KMT government about the human rights of the detained political leaders.

The Dalai Lama's visit is over and much went as according to script. Ma Ying-jeou and the KMT leaders avoided him; the DPP leaders welcomed him, China protested but not too much so that it would not put Ma in a bad spot (they put the blame on the DPP). On the ground, the people in the south were comforted, the Dalai Lama showed them more sympathy and empathy than Ma ever did. Overall the country was glad he came, but as always there were some protesters; in a democracy, you always will have protesters. During the same time period there was even a larger protest against the United State--that protest was about how Taiwan (because of its unresolved status after the 1952 Treaty of San Francisco) still belonged to the USA. But protests aside, there was one other interesting aspect.