COMMEMORATING 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ``228 INCIDENT'' IN TAIWAN --

(Extensions of Remarks - February 27, 2007)

SPEECH OF HON. THOMAS G. TANCREDO OF COLORADO

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2007

Mr. TANCREDO. Madam Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the ``228 Incident'' in Taiwan.

On February 28, 1947, the arrest of a cigarette vendor in Taipei triggered large-scale protests there against military repression of Taiwan's residents.

Madam Speaker, while the protests the event sparked were quashed in the days and weeks following the initial incident, the event had far reaching implications.

Over the next half-century, the movement that grew out of the event helped to pave the way for Taiwan's momentous transformation from a dictatorship to thriving and pluralistic democracy.

In some ways, the 228 incident was Taiwan's ``Boston Massacre.''

Madam Speaker, I hope Members will join me in commemorating this important historical event, and I look forward to the day that we can welcome Taiwan's elected President to Washington, DC.