Eulogy In memory of the Taiwanese Spirits
Greetings to all the Spirits of the Taiwanese heroes in the Yasukuni Shrine! We come here today as a group of native Taiwanese people, representing the Taiwan Civil Government, which has been organized under international law.
After WWII in the Pacific, from the coming into force of the San Francisco Peace Treaty (SFPT) some 59 years ago, this is the first time that a group of native Taiwanese people have come to the Yasukuni Shrine to give thanks and pay respects to the souls of our Taiwan heroes. We are deeply sorry that we have been so late in coming.
After the conquest of Japan by the United States in WWII, under the laws of war, the law of nations, and all relevant international precedent, the US military authorities must make arrangements for establishing a local civil government in Japan's conquered overseas territories, in a similar fashion to dealing with the Ryukyu Islands. Hence, the Taiwan Civil Government (TCG) announced its establishment on Feb. 2, 2008, and with the help of the US Executive Branch officials then established a Washington D.C. representative office on July 4, 2010. A celebratory Cocktail Party was held at the Four Seasons Hotel, Washington D.C. on Sept. 8, 2010. Please see our English language website at
Taiwan Civil Government. On Nov. 6, 2010, the appointments to the TCG's Cabinet and Senate were finalized.
From Oct. 25, 1945, when the Chinese began the military occupation of Taiwan on behalf of the USA, the native Taiwanese have endured 66 years of cultural brainwashing, and their native character has diminished generation by generation, with the result that there are no brave persons in Taiwan today who can compare with the Taiwanese heroes in the Yasukuni Shrine. At present under international law, the ROC is an exiled regime, the native Taiwanese are stateless, which means without a country to which to give allegiance. If there were to be war in Southeast Asia, for what reasons should the native Taiwanese fight? For whom should they fight? Today, the native Taiwanese have come to the Yasukuni Shrine to recover their original purpose for existence, and their souls.
We remember all of the brave spirits who died for the Japanese motherland and have been placed here in the Yasukuni Shrine. Indeed, we can say that their memories are held in honor. In the Fall of 1945, after the conclusion of hostilities in the Pacific War, many native Taiwanese soldiers (of Japanese nationality) were sent to China by the ROC regime to fight in the Chinese civil war, in violation of the international norms regarding the treatment of persons in occupied territory. Then, in 1947, the 228 Incident erupted in occupied Taiwan, and thousands of native Taiwanese were slaughtered. Others died in the fighting in the Korean War, beginning in 1950. These were all innocent victims of the ROC regime's governance of Taiwan, and we were further saddened by their passing.
Emperor Hirohito was deeply moved by the sacrifices and suffering which you endured, and on April 1, 1945, he issued an Imperial Rescript, which raised Taiwan's position from the status of colony to fully incorporated national territory. He granted political rights to native Taiwanese persons, and thus recognized the great contributions which native Taiwanese people have made to the motherland of Japan. The TCG also acknowledges your great contributions, and prays that you will use your spiritual power to assist us, so that we can achieve the normalization of Taiwan's legal status at an early date.