The Taiwan independence movement is a political movement which advocates the formal declaration of an independent and sovereign Taiwanese state, as opposed to Chinese unification or the status quo in Cross-Strait relations.
The February 28 incident was an anti-government uprising in Taiwan in 1947 that was violently suppressed by the Kuomintang–led nationalist government of the Republic of China (ROC). Directed by provincial governor Chen Yi and president Chiang Kai-shek, thousands of civilians were killed beginning on February 28. The incident is considered to be one of the most important events in Taiwan's modern history and was a critical impetus for the Taiwan independence movement.
Several proposals for a flag of Taiwan have been initiated by supporters of the Taiwan independence movement to replace the flag of the Republic of China as the national flag flown over Taiwan. Supporters of the movement object to the use of the flag of the Republic of China since it was designed by and is closely associated with the Kuomintang. However, no single flag has been established as the symbol of the independence movement, and supporters of Taiwanese independence, such as the Democratic Progressive Party, have accepted the flag of the Republic of China for the time being and have not pushed for a new flag. The flag of the Republic of China in current use is defined in the 6th article of the Constitution, and amending the Constitution requires a referendum which would only succeed with wide political support. The Republic of China, originally based in mainland China, retreated to Taiwan in 1949 and established its capital in Taipei. The region, now commonly referred to as "Taiwan" in vernacular, retains its official name "Republic of China" and still officially claims territories governed by the People's Republic of China, just as the PRC claims all ROC territories.
The Kaohsiung Incident, also known as the Formosa Incident, the Meilidao Incident, or the Formosa Magazine incident, was a crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations that occurred in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on 10 December 1979 during Taiwan's martial law period.
The history of the Republic of China begins after the Qing dynasty in 1912, when the Xinhai Revolution and the formation of the Republic of China put an end to 2,000 years of imperial rule. The Republic experienced many trials and tribulations after its founding which included being dominated by elements as disparate as warlord generals and foreign powers.
The Republic of Formosa was a short-lived republic that existed on the island of Taiwan in 1895 between the formal cession of Taiwan by the Qing dynasty of China to the Empire of Japan by the Treaty of Shimonoseki and its being taken over by Japanese troops. The Republic lasted 151 days; it was proclaimed on 23 May 1895 and extinguished on 21 October, when the Republican capital Tainan was taken over by the Japanese. Though sometimes claimed as the first East Asian republic to have been proclaimed, it was predated by the Lanfang Republic in Borneo, established in 1777, as well as by the Republic of Ezo in Japan, established in 1869.
Shih Ming-teh, commonly known as Nori Shih, was a Taiwanese statesman and human rights defender. He was once a political prisoner for 25-and-a-half years.
Peng Ming-min was a notable Taiwanese democracy activist, advocate of Taiwan independence, and politician. Arrested for sedition in 1964 for printing a manifesto advocating democracy in his native Taiwan, he escaped to Sweden, before taking a post as a university teacher in the United States. After 22 years in exile he returned to become the Democratic Progressive Party's first presidential candidate in Taiwan's first direct presidential election in 1996.
As a result of the surrender and occupation of Japan at the end of World War II, the islands of Taiwan and Penghu were placed under the governance of the Republic of China (ROC), ruled by the Kuomintang (KMT), on 25 October 1945. Following the February 28 massacre in 1947, martial law was declared in 1949 by the Governor of Taiwan, Chen Cheng, and the ROC Ministry of National Defense. Following the end of the Chinese Civil War in 1949, the ROC government retreated from the mainland as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) proclaimed the establishment of the People's Republic of China. The KMT retreated to Taiwan and declared Taipei the temporary capital of the ROC. For many years, the ROC and PRC each continued to claim in the diplomatic arena to be the sole legitimate government of "China". In 1971, the United Nations expelled the ROC and replaced it with the PRC.
The Formosan League for Reemancipation was the first organization supportive of the Taiwan independence movement to be established outside the island of Taiwan after World War II. It was founded on 28 February 1948 in Hong Kong. Huang Chi-nan and Thomas Liao founded the organization after Thomas's brother Joshua had been arrested during the February 28 Incident of 1947 by authorities in Shanghai. Upon his release from prison, Joshua was entrusted with responsibility of coordinating the actions of FLR members in Nanking and Shanghai. Thomas oversaw FLR activists based in Japan, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. The organization maintained direct contact with government officials in the United States and the Philippines. The Central Intelligence Agency collected information on the FLR.
Retrocession Day is the name given to the annual observance and a former public holiday in Taiwan to commemorate the end of Japanese rule of Taiwan and Penghu, and the claimed retrocession ("return") of Taiwan to the Republic of China on 25 October 1945. However, the idea of "Taiwan retrocession" is in dispute.
Taiwanese nationalism is a nationalist movement which asserts that the Taiwanese people are a distinct nation. Due to the complex political status of Taiwan, it is strongly linked to the Taiwan independence movement in seeking an identity separate from China. This involves the education of history, geography, and culture from a Taiwan-centric perspective, promoting native languages of Taiwan such as Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka, and indigenous languages, as well as reforms in other aspects.
The term "Taiwanese people" has various interpretations. It may generally be considered the people living on the island of Taiwan who share a common culture, ancestry and speak Mandarin, Hokkien, Hakka, or indigenous Taiwanese languages as a mother tongue. Taiwanese people may also refer to the indigenous peoples of the areas under the control of the Government of the Republic of China since 1945, including Kinmen and Matsu Islands that collectively form its streamlined Fujian Province. However, the inhabitants of Kinmen and the Matsu Islands themselves may not consider the "Taiwanese" label to be accurate as they are a part of Fujian and not Taiwan. They have a distinctive identity from that of the Taiwanese; viewing themselves as Kinmenese or Matsunese, respectively, or as simply Chinese.
Chai Trong-rong, sometimes known in English as Trong Chai, was a Taiwanese politician.
The White Terror was the political repression of Taiwanese civilians and political dissenters under the Kuomintang (KMT)-ruled government. The period of White Terror is generally considered to have begun when martial law was declared in Taiwan on 19 May 1949, which was enabled by the 1948 Temporary Provisions against the Communist Rebellion, and ended on 21 September 1992 with the repeal of Article 100 of the Criminal Code, allowing for the prosecution of "anti-state" activities. The Temporary Provisions were repealed a year earlier on 22 April 1991 and martial law was lifted on 15 July 1987.
Ng Chiau-tong was a Taiwanese pro-independence activist who served as the chairman of the World United Formosans for Independence (WUFI) until his death in 2011.
Cheng Tzu-tsai is a Taiwan-born architect and dissident who conspired with others in the 1970 assassination attempt of Chiang Ching-kuo, the son of Chiang Kai-shek, in New York City.
Shen Fu-hsiung is a Taiwanese physician and politician.
The Formosa Alliance is a political coalition founded in Taiwan on 7 April 2018. The organization reformed as a political party on 20 July 2019.
Thomas Liao was a Taiwanese independence activist and founding leader of the Republic of Taiwan Provisional Government.
