Taiwan Church News
3723 Edition
July 3rd ~ 9th, 2023
Topical News
Reported by Chiu Kuo-rong from Taipei
Translated by Peter Wolfe
On July 1, the National 228 Memorial Museum held a book-launch for “Chan San Yen’s Commemorative Paintings Album: A grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies for the democracy of Taiwan”, to pay tribute to Mr Chan San-yen, the first-ever 228 massacre monument designer in Taiwan democracy history.
Rev Kang Wen-hsiang, pastor of Shin-Wen Church of Chiayi Presbytery and host of the book-launch, said that Mr Chan San-yen was prosecuted and imprisoned for designing the first-ever 228 massacre monument in Taiwan. As the Christian faith treasures the spirit of “no cross, no crown”, Mr Chan San-yen’s sacrifice in prison becomes a glory of the suffered afterwards, Rev remarked.
In addition, “The 228 Monument awakens the people of Taiwan to be no more silent about social injustice, and the related restorative and transitional justice can come to be done step by step. The 228 Monument is a symbol of healing the wounds and sufferings in the past, and the next tasks for Taiwan society is to love each other and sow the seeds of love wherever they are needed”, Rev Kang stressed.
Mr Yang Tsen-long, director of the National 228 Memorial Museum, expressed that Mr Chan San-yen was an artist and a democracy activist, and his contributions to Taiwan democracy are historical as his artworks witnessed the history of Taiwan’s democracy movement. Mr Yang believed the exhibition of Chan San-yen’s artworks and the launch of his paintings album will let the public know Taiwan democracy is the collective sufferings and sacrifices of so many martyrs, heroes and common people, and we must not step back into the historical darkness under KMT dictatorship rulings.
In his speech, Mr Jiang Kai-shi, director of Taipei Love and Nonviolence Association, shared his memory of Chan San-yen. When he was a college student, Mr Jiang paid a visit to Chan San-yen when the issue of 228 massacre incident was still a very sensitive issue in Taiwan society. Mr Jiang remembered that Chan San-yen’s father could not help but cried out when the 228 massacre was discussed, as he had personally witnessed Lawyer Tang Te-chang’s being tortured and brutally slaughtered by the KMT soldiers at Tainan City in March 1947 and Tang’s body was ordered to be exposed outdoors for three days.
Due to this traumatic experience, Mr Jiang understood the fears and shocks of the Taiwanese under the shadow of 228 massacre could be buried and lasted for decades, which made him think more about how to alleviate these sufferings.
Mr Jiang pointed out that shortly after the first-ever 228 massacre monument was erected in Jiayi County, Chan San-yen was accused of attacking under-cover military police during a mass movement and was sentenced immediately. In January 1993, he experienced the arrest, trial and lived a very difficult life in prison.
Mrs Cheng Geng-yu, Chan San-yen’s wife, wrote in her diary how she worked hard to support her husband in jail and take care of their three children. Mr Jiang said that commemorating Chan San-yen and the monument he designed can warn the Taiwanese people today not to let future generations shed tears in the days under oppression, and encourage them to live bravely with peace in this beautiful Formosa.
Mrs Cheng said that Chan San-yen’s original design of the 228 monument was to break various taboos and prohibitions of the discussion of 228 massacre in Taiwan society, as well as to reveal that chaotic and trauma period of Taiwan history, so that the 228 massacre victims could be comforted.
At the most difficult moment of the building of the monument, Mrs Cheng said that the pastors of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (the PCT) still decided to carry on the monument project. She believed that it is because the insistence of these PCT pastors that Taiwan can move towards democracy step by step.
Although some people criticized Chan San-yen’s semi-revolutionary idea and designs back then, thinking that he abandoned his family, Mrs Cheng said that if these conservative taboos and biases were not broken, Taiwanese would always be in bondage like a slave. Mrs Cheng reminded the audience about the biblical stories of the Exodus: even after witnessing God’s miracle, the Israelis peoples still complained and wanted to return to Egypt to continue their living as slaves before.
This Exodus story revealed to her the darkness of human nature, Mrs Cheng said, as Chan San-yen often said that the Taiwanese people have a slave mind-set which needs to be broken. As Chan San-yen’s wife, she feels very much honored and proud about Chan’s insight and insistence to fight for freedom and democracy for Taiwan. .
Mr Chan Chi-hong, the second son of Chan San-yen, mentioned that this painting album contains more than 100 artworks of his father. The album title is derived from Jesus’ teaching, “a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies”(John 12:24), anticipating the voiceless struggles and endeavors of so many people for Taiwan will have a great harvest in the future. After the launch of the painting album, Mr Chang Keh-ping, the architect of the 228 Monument and the elder of West Gate Church of Chiayi Presbytery also delivered a speech.
