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The Kaohsiung Incident was the result of pro- democracy demonstrations that occurred in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, Republic of China to commemorate Human Rights Day on December 10, 1979.It erupted following the police raid of Formosa Magazine, an illegal publication designed to support the end of Kuomintang monopolization of power in Taiwan. The ROC Government Information Office under the leadership of James Soong hoped to chill opposition voices through heavyhanded methods. The protest disintegrated into a brawl as protesters, police and undercover agents collided. Soong addressed the public in a speech condemning the protesters, labelling one of the leaders, Shih Ming-teh, "King of Bandits."
The incident publicized the oppressive tactics of the government in ruling Taiwan and the trial of eight leaders of the protest allowed a team of lawyers to publicly question the practices of torture used by the KMT to extract confessions. Most defense attorneys and defendants were members of the Chinese Comparative Law Society (中國比較法學會), which is now the Taiwan Law Society (台灣法學會).
One of the accused, Lin Yi-hsiung , was routinely tortured by police interrogators. Then, on February 28, 1980, while Lin's wife was discussing his case, Lin's mother and twin 7 year old girls were murdered in his home. The event, known as the "Lin Family Murders," remains unsolved.
Several of the accused later became politicians after completion of their prison terms, while members of the defense team became leaders of the Tangwai (Outside Party) movement and later the Democratic Progressive Party. Members of the defense team included Chen Shui-bian ( President of the ROCThe President of the Republic of China is the head of state of the Republic of China, the government which administered part or all of Mainland China from 1917 to 1949 and has administered Taiwan and several outlying islands from 1945 until the present.), Su Tseng-changSu Tseng-chang (, pinyin: Su Zhengchng) (born July 28, 1947) is the Secretary-General to the President of the Republic of China and one of the founding members of the Democratic Progressive Party. Born in Pingtung, Su was a practicing lawyer (1973-1983) e ( magistrate of Taipei county) and Frank HsiehFrank Chang-ting Hsieh ( Taiwanese Romanization: Si Tiong-teng or Chi Tiong-teng; Chinese: , pinyin: Xie Changting) (born May 18, 1946), a politician of the Democratic Progressive Party, has been the mayor of Kaohsiung City since December 1998. Born in Da (Kaohsiung Mayor). Those amongst the accused are Annette LuHsiu-lien Annette Lu (, pinyin: L Xiulian) (born June 7, 1944) is the vice president of Republic of China on Taiwan and a member of the Democratic Progressive Party. She was born in Taoyuan County, in northern Taiwan, and studied law at the National Taiwa (Vice President of the ROC), Shi Ming-teh (Political Leader), and Lin Yi-hsiung (Activist and former DPP chairman).
Ironically and as a sign of how much politics in Taiwan has changed, Shi Ming-teh was seriously considered to be the KMT nominee for mayor of Kaohsiung in 2002. Another important leader during the incident, Hsu Hsing-liang, left the DPP in 2000 and ran for presidential electionThe Election for the 10th-term President and Vice-President of the Republic of China , the second ever direct elections for President and Vice President of the Republic of China on Taiwan and the 10th under the 1947 Constitution, were held on March 18, 20 as an independent candidate. Both of them have been very critical of Chen Shui-bian's government.
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