Shining Light into Dark Corners Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT): “No exceptional circumstances whatsoever, whether a state of war or a threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency, may be invoked as a justification of torture.” Letting Memories See the Light of Day Many countries such as South Africa, Germany, and South Korea have experience with transitional justice. The NHRC uses three approaches to convert the history of past injustices into teaching materials for human rights education: Lin Shui-quan (left) and Huang Hua (right) were victims of political persecution branded as “hoodlums” by the government and sent to the 3rd Occupational Training Headquarters on Liuqiu Island for reformation training without a trial. 1. Preservation of historical sites where injustices were committed On October 7, 2020, Commissioners of the NHRC and former political prisoners Tsai Kuan-yu, Fred Him-San Chin and Chen Lie had their photograph taken together in front of the Monument for Human Rights on Green Island (Lyudao). The inscription on the monument by Bo Yang read: “In those times, mothers wept through the long night for their children imprisoned on this island.” In their investigation into the case of Lin Shui- The NHRC discovered after its visit to the Ankang quan, Vice Chairperson Kao Yung-cheng and Reception House that the site was representative Commissioner Chang Chu-fang found that of how security agencies interrogated political political dissidents may have been branded prisoners during the 1970s and 1980s. At such as “hoodlums” by the authoritarian rulers and locations, injustices such as the extensive use of sent directly to the 3rd Occupational Training torture were committed. Most of the other places Headquarters on Liuqiu Island for reformation once used by the security agencies to extract training. Alternatively, political prisoners that had confessions have been demolished or built over. already completed their sentences were also sent The NHRC is therefore actively working with the there for further reformation training and forced Ministry of Justice, Transitional Justice Commission labor without court-ordered sentences. The site and National Human Rights Museum on the should therefore be designated a historical site of preservation of the site. injustice due to the serious human rights abuses that took place. 2. Shooting of the documentary A list of those executed by firing squad during the Martial Law period is on display within the Green Island Human Rights Memorial Park. Stumbling through the Darkness Stumbling through the Darkness is a documentary filmed by the NHRC on historical sites of injustice. It is available on YouTube and has also been played at the special exhibition for Human Rights Day and other events. The documentary introduces society to the memories associated with historical On September 21, 2020, the NHRC held a minute of silence to commemorate the victims buried at the Liuzhangli Cemeteries. 24 The Liuzhangli Cemeteries became widely known after Tseng Meilan's search for the remains of his brother Hsu Ching-lan. The cemeteries are divided into three areas and around two hundred victims of political persecution are interred here. In 2016, the area was designated as a cultural landscape by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Taipei City Government. Victim of political persecution Chang Tse-chou (right), National Human Rights Museum Director Chen Chun-hung and NHRC Commissioners revisited the 3rd Occupational Training Headquarters on Liuqiu Island on November 26, 2020. They described how they were made to break up, move and carry rocks while shackled under the blazing sun as part of reformation training. Huang Hua said they were like the slaves in movies about Ancient Rome. sites of injustice and their implications for human rights education. It also helps people understand how core UN human rights conventions including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention against Torture (CAT), and the International Convention for the Protection of 25