A Campaign of Terror and Massacre

After the 2-28 Incident, the Taiwanese requested that the Nationalist government make reforms, and started a movement for “Taiwanese rule on Taiwan with International Intervention.” The government responded by deeming such requests as tantamount to treason, accusing protesters of planning to overthrow the government through armed rebellion. The government then started a campaign of ruthless suppression and bloody massacres.

On March 8, Nationalist troop reinforcements from China landed on Keelung Harbor. Nationalist military leaders Ke Yuan-fen and Peng Meng-chi, coordinated government forces on the island and launched a massive attack, treating the Taiwanese as an enemy of war. With their cannons leading the way, the troops inflicted a large-scale massacre on the entire island. Many innocent people lost their lives, as the troops ransacked houses at random, killing the occupants as they left. Many of the Taiwanese intelligentsia or participants of reform groups such as the Political Reconstruction Committee were executed; countless personal and political vendettas against Taiwanese were avenged.

The killing was vicious -- corpses were left on the street, thrown into the river or ocean, or hidden to cover up the wrongdoings. Because of this, it is difficult to make an accurate estimate of the number of deaths. However, over 200,000 bullets used at that time have been recovered, allowing for rough estimates.

During the 2-28 Incident, the government targeted Taiwan's intelligentsia -- if they weren't killed, they were either imprisoned or exiled overseas. A small number were brought into the system. During the following period of authoritarian rule, also known as the White Terror, the Taiwanese lacked the means to political dissent. This calamity brought deep wounds and had a profound effect on Taiwanese society.