Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall

The Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall is a product of a particular era. Its purpose was to commemorate an authoritarian strongman, which runs contrary to the values of freedom and democracy held today. However, the way in which power is exercised in democratic Taiwan should not be top-down as it was in the authoritarian period. A democratic society must emphasize communication, persuasion, and consensus-building. The question of how to deal with the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall should be worked through together by society to form a plan that a majority of people can accept. The Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall has thus entered a transitional period, and it is precisely through communication and discussion across all sectors of society that it hopes to become an acceptable, appropriate public space.