1. Shih Ming-teh, commonly known as Nori Shih, was a Taiwanese statesman and human rights defender.
71 Facts About Shih Ming-teh
1. 2.
Shih Ming-teh was once a political prisoner for 25-and-a-half years.
3.
The sentence was commuted to 15 years in 1975, and Shih Ming-teh was released on 16 June 1977.
4.
Shih Ming-teh promptly joined the Tangwai, became a reporter for the Liberty Times and married the American researcher Linda Gail Arrigo.
5.
Shih Ming-teh resigned from the Democratic Progressive Party on 14 November 2000.
6.
In 2006, Shih Ming-teh carried out a huge protest, known as Million Voices Against Corruption, President Chen Must Go, in an effort to force the embattled president Chen Shui-bian to resign.
7.
Shih Ming-teh led a round-the-clock sit-in in front of the Presidential Building and Taipei Railway Station in Taipei City, pledging to remain there until President Chen resigned, or he reached the end of his term in March 2008.
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Shih Ming-teh was one of the most prominent personalities of the Tangwai movement and greatly contributed to Taiwan's democratization.
9.
Shih Ming-teh has been referred to by some as "Taiwan's Mandela" on account of his efforts for democracy and prolonged incarceration.
10.
Shih Ming-teh's father Shih Kuo-tsui was a well-known practitioner of Chinese medicine.
11.
In February 1947, Shih Ming-teh witnessed at Kaohsiung Station that would later be known as the February 28 Incident.
12.
In 1962 Shih Ming-teh was arrested for alleged involvement in the "Formosa Independence Movement"; over 30 more accomplices, mostly army school and university students, were arrested.
13.
In 1964 Shih Ming-teh was sentenced to life imprisonment for orchestrating the independence movement.
14.
Shih Ming-teh was stripped of his civil rights for life.
15.
Shih Ming-teh was roughed up and suffered the loss of his teeth and spinal damage at the age of 22.
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Shih Ming-teh focused on philosophy, history, international law, linguistics and Japanese.
17.
Shih Ming-teh developed a strong and resolute personality in prison.
18.
The Kuomintang believed Shih Ming-teh was one of the masterminds of the uprising and therefore kept him in isolation during his time in Taiyuan.
19.
Shih Ming-teh had had an affair with one of Shih's friends, who had been released before Shih.
20.
On 16 June 1977, Shih Ming-teh was released after serving only 15 years of a life sentence.
21.
Shih Ming-teh created a "party without a name" amidst the absence of freedom of association in Taiwan at that time.
22.
In September 1978 Shih Ming-teh became active in the Tangwai movement.
23.
In May 1979 this group of non-Kuomintang activists established the Meilitao Magazine, of which Shih Ming-teh was named general manager.
24.
Shih Ming-teh was later caught along with the dentist, and sentenced to life in prison for the second time.
25.
Shih Ming-teh declared during his defense: "Taiwan should be independent, in fact, it already is, it has been for 30 years and currently it is known as the Republic of China".
26.
Shih Ming-teh demanded an end to the political monopoly of the Kuomintang, the control of the Taiwanese press, and martial law, so that the 30-plus-year rubber-stamping legislative session could be dissolved.
27.
In 1983, one of Shih's allies, Chen Wen-chen, was murdered; Shih Ming-teh began a 1-month hunger strike to protest what he believed to be an assassination ordered by the secret police.
28.
Shih Ming-teh demanded an end to martial law and state-sponsored political murders, implementation of a democratic system and release of all Meilitao Incident political prisoners.
29.
Shih Ming-teh was sent to the Tri-Service General Hospital and underwent force-feeding through a nasogastric tube during his four and half years of protest.
30.
In 1988, Shih Ming-teh went on another hunger strike protest with his brother Shih Ming-teh Ming-cheng.
31.
Shih Ming-teh's brother died on 23 August 1988; Shih survived.
32.
Shih Ming-teh ripped up his amnesty document and demanded an unconditional release.
33.
When President Lee announced the invalidation of the Meilitao Trials, Shih Ming-teh finally accepted his release as an innocent person.
34.
In 1992, Shih Ming-teh was elected legislator for the Tainan County constituency in the Legislative Yuan.
35.
Between 1994 and 1996 Shih Ming-teh was elected Chairman of the Democratic Progressive Party.
36.
Shih Ming-teh resigned to his position as party chief, and Chang Chun-hsiung assumed as acting leader of the opposition party.
37.
Shih Ming-teh shifted his attention to the completion of the "Meilitao Oral History Records".
38.
On 1 April 1997, Shih Ming-teh was indicted for a violation to the Mass Gathering and Demonstration Act.
39.
Shih Ming-teh had organized in 1992 a protest demanding direct presidential elections.
40.
In 1998, Shih Ming-teh was re-elected legislator but this time representing a Taipei City constituency.
41.
Shih Ming-teh would continue his efforts for the completion of the "Meilitao Oral History Records".
42.
Shih Ming-teh congratulated the leader of the Democratic Progressive Party Lin Yi-hsiung for the triumph.
43.
Shih Ming-teh said in an interview that since his childhood dream of ousting Chiang's KMT regime had been accomplished, he would leave the political party.
44.
Shih Ming-teh rejected Chen's offer once more, but instead proposed Hsu Hsin-liang for the position.
45.
Shih Ming-teh condemned President Chen for leading the country with a minority government, ignoring the KMT majority in the Legislative Yuan and risking political stability.
46.
Shih Ming-teh ran as an independent twice, in December 2001 and December 2004.
47.
Shih Ming-teh had proposed a parliamentary political system to overcome the aggravation of political differences in Taiwan's society.
48.
In December 2002, Shih Ming-teh ran as a mayoral candidate for Kaohsiung City.
49.
Shih Ming-teh's platform: turn the port-city into a free port, much like Hong Kong or Amsterdam, to cope with the challenge of globalization.
50.
Shih Ming-teh perceived that the political division was so severe that he decided to announce his withdrawal three days before the election.
51.
In September 2003, Shih Ming-teh was a visiting scholar at George Mason University for a one-year period.
52.
In May 2015, Shih Ming-teh announced his intention to run for president as an independent candidate in 2016.
53.
Shih Ming-teh again reiterated the Broad One China Framework first proposed in 2014, in which China and Taiwan govern one legal entity separately.
54.
On 9 August 2006, Shih Ming-teh wrote an open letter to President Chen Shui-bian, whose aides, wife and son-in-law were implicated in several corruption cases.
55.
Shih Ming-teh urged Chen to resign as a display of strength in times of crisis, respect for public opinion and acknowledgement of wrongdoing.
56.
On 12 August 2006, Shih Ming-teh gave a keynote speech to kick-start the "Million Voices Against Corruption-Chen Must Go" campaign in the 28 February Incident Memorial Park.
57.
Shih Ming-teh argued that the people could not bear with so much corruption anymore.
58.
Shih Ming-teh asked of all those who supported the movement a NT$100 donation as a symbol of commitment and consent, as well as a display of determination to ask Chen Shui-bian to leave the Presidential Office.
59.
Shih Ming-teh vowed to lead the people in a protest until Chen Shui-bian stepped down if the donations came in.
60.
Shih Ming-teh decided to move the protest to Taipei Railway Station.
61.
On 22 September 2006, Shih Ming-teh declared that he would not form his own political party nor participate in any political negotiations, he made it clear that he was not willing to engage in negotiations with former president Lee Teng-hui; instead he would stay with the red-clad anti-Chen protestors.
62.
On 20 November 2006, Shih Ming-teh urged Taipei City Mayor Ma Ying-jeou to resign amidst accusations of corruption.
63.
Shih Ming-teh said he was not contemplating anti-corruption protests against Ma, but insisted there should not be double standards regarding corruption allegations.
64.
Shih Ming-teh later travelled to Thailand for a TV interview and panel discussion.
65.
On 1 April 2007, Shih Ming-teh announced the end to his self-imprisonment and started preparations for the second stage of the anti-Chen campaign.
66.
Shih Ming-teh was married to Linda Arrigo from 1978 to 1995.
67.
Shih Ming-teh died on 15 January 2024 of cancer at Taipei Veterans General Hospital, on his 83rd birthday.
68.
Shih Ming-teh was often considered a "romantic revolutionary" in Taiwan media.
69.
Shih Ming-teh believed that he was rooted in his ability "to pursue unlimited aspirations and ideals under restrictive conditions".
70.
Chen claimed Shih Ming-teh had been indifferent to his responsibility toward their daughter.
71.
Over 20 years ago, Shih Ming-teh already said the four evils of Taiwan's path towards democracy were the political monopoly by the Kuomintang, the press control in Taiwan, the martial law and the "Ten-thousand-year Congress".