Formosa Magazine

Formosa Magazine, also known as Mei-li-tao (Chinese: 『美麗島』雜誌; pinyin: Měilìdǎo Zázhì; Wade–Giles: Mei-li-tao Tsa-chi; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Bí-lē-tó Cha̍p-chì), was a magazine created by Tangwai individuals in Taiwan during the summer of 1979. It opposed the Kuomintang's political monopoly in the Republic of China government. A police raid of the Formosa Press caused the Kaohsiung Incident in December 1979.

Formosa Magazine

First issue of Formosa Magazine, dated 16 August 1979
Chief Editor	Chang Chun-hung
General Manager	Shih Ming-teh
Editor	Hsu Hsin-liang
Editor	Annette Lu
Circulation Manager	Lin Yi-hsiung
Frequency	Monthly
Format	21 cm
Publisher	Huang Hsin-chieh
Total circulation (1979)	140,000
First issue	16 August 1979 (1979-08-16)
Final issue Number	November 1979 Vol 1 No 4[1]
Country	Taiwan
Language	Chinese language
OCLC	7186174

There were 61 participants; less than ten were truly active, namely,

• Huang Hsin-chieh, publisher^[2]
• Chang Chun-hung, chief editor^[2]
• Shih Ming-teh, general manager^[3]
• Hsu Hsin-liang, editor^[4]
• Annette Lu, editor
• Lin Yi-hsiung, circulation manager^[5]
• Yao Chia-wen, circulation controller^[6]

The opening celebration took place in Mandarina Crown Hotel (中泰賓館) in the afternoon of 8 September 1979.^[1] A blockade by the military ensued, sometimes known as the Mandarina Crown Hotel Incident. For the next three months until the raid, branches were opened throughout Taiwan. Opening were followed by speeches and conferences.

Formosa Magazine was owned by The Formosa Plastics Group, a group of companies originally founded in 1954 in part funded by an American economic aid mission. ^[7][8]

References

1. Hsu, Chien-Jung (2014). The Construction of National Identity in Taiwan's Media, 1896-2012. Leiden, The Netherlands: Koninklijke Brill NV. pp. 88–89. ISBN 978-90-04-22770-5. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
2. "With justice and kindness". Taiwan Today. 1 May 1980. Retrieved 19 February 2017.
3. "Dissidents' trial ends with plea for reform". The Age. Melbourne. 31 March 1980. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
4. Woodruff, Cathy (7 July 1986). "2 Taiwanese Seek Allies For Opposition Party". Schenectady Gazette. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
5. "Dissident's Mother, 2 Daughters Are Killed". Toledo Blade. Reuters. 29 February 1980. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
6. McDonald, Hamish (3 April 1980). "On trial in Taiwan". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
7. Copper, John F. (1 January 1981). "Taiwan in 1980: Entering a New Decade". Asian Survey. 21 (1): 52. doi:10.2307/2643664. Retrieved 13 October 2024.
8. "FORMOSA PLASTICS CORPORATION TAIWAN". www.oceansplasticleanup.com. Retrieved 13 October 2024.

External links

• "Formosa Incident" (requires Flash). Taiwan Government Archives. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
• "The "Kaohsiung Incident" of 1979". New Taiwan. 26 May 2001. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
• Tsai, Duujian (2002). "3. Shifting National Identities in Public Spheres: A Cultural Account of Political Transformation in Taiwan". In Katz, Paul; Rubinstein, Murray (eds.). Religion and the Formation of Taiwanese Identities. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. pp. 73–76. ISBN 978-0312239695. OCLC 50745132. Retrieved 29 January 2015.