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January 3rd, 2012  OPINION / By Linda Arrigo (permission to republish; originally here)
The New York Times editorial, “To Save Our Economy, Ditch Taiwan”, has raised my hackles – I always warned Taiwanese independence advocates that the US would sell them out, and here it is literal.
I have not been following the pre-election campaigns, but rather rely on my Taiwanese friends to give their boiled-down version of what’s in the news. More significant than public statements, I think, is the glimpses I have gotten on under-the-table long-term developments, by way of friends and acquaintances in government and business. Recently some Australian visitors to Taiwan asked my opinion, and I hit upon the analogy that Taiwan is a frog that is already in the jaws of a large python, but the python may find it hard to swallow. The “status quo” is of course not static, and has been moving predictably in China’s favor since the mid-1990’s.
At the present moment, several factors may be salient. First, Taiwan’s retired military and security officers have been going to China for at least the last two decades, and some even serve as consultants to China. A while back the Taipei Times made a count of over 400. I believe that China has thorough intelligence on Taiwan independence forces and others in Taiwan, and is poised to crack down when needed. For example, last month local newspapers revealed that a professor at the police academy had copied personal information on Taiwan citizens criticizing China from police files and handed the information over to China. I have also run into numerous Chinese academics coming to Taiwan to “study” the Taiwan independence movement, but what they write generally reports the Kuomintang (KMT) line. As for Taiwan’s capacity for self-defense, to quote a private presentation by one of the correspondents for Jane’s Defence Weekly, Taiwan pays out for the fanciest and shiniest fire engines, but neglects to purchase the hoses. I’d guess that Taiwan’s purchases from the US are in effect protection money, only applicable for the current year.
Second, although China may depend largely on the KMT as its proxy to keep Taiwanese in line, it has been directly influencing KMT and even some current and former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) elected officials with monetary rewards delivered through intermediaries. One of my sources on this is a member of the Kaohsiung City Council. For example, Chen Chu, mayor of Kaohsiung, was quickly punished for showing “The Ten Conditions of Love” about the heroine of Xinjiang, Rebiya Kadeer, by such a mechanism. It is likely that China, not merely the KMT, was ultimately behind the 2006 blitz to remove Chen Shui-bian.
Third, freedom of speech has markedly contracted. China has been reportedly buying into more and more Taiwan media. It can easily be observed that Taiwan TV news no longer addresses anything more significant than suicides, traffic accidents, and where to buy the best beef noodles (the reporters get convenient payouts from restaurants reported on). As in Singapore, and as in the new policy enacted by the security agencies and the Government Information Office in 1983 after the 1980 Kaohsiung Incident trials for sedition put egg on their faces in international press, political opponents can be crippled through libel charges. The courts have recently been fining those charged with libel $NT5-6 million, e.g. the fine for a commentator calling Shih Ming-deh (now aligned with Blues and Reds) a “political gigolo”. Within academia, universities have at the request of government officials removed from positions of authority professors who have criticized Ma Ying-jeou’s policies; and academics in general have shifted to self-censorship and avoidance of sensitive social and political topics.
Fourth, the rapid economic development of China has pushed past a tipping point: Native Taiwanese capitalists have in past decades understandably been eager to be free from the predatory KMT government and state corporations, and strongly supported the cause of democracy and Taiwan independence as well. But in the 1990’s they moved labor-intensive activities to China and elsewhere by the necessity of international competition, and now the Chinese market looms large as well. China has both increasingly accommodated the Taiwanese businessmen (e.g. allowing them international schools for their children) and enmeshed and controlled them (selective tax audits, with fines open to negotiation). This is the underlying dynamic, I believe, that even Tsai Ing-wen cannot undo, assuming she is elected.
Many Greens think that Tsai Ing-wen of the DPP has a 50-50 chance of being elected, and I hope that she is, but I would not hold my breath. If so, we might have a new lease on the progress of democracy in Taiwan, at least for the time being. It will also be a crucial test of whether we do in fact have a democratic process in voting; but the long economic strength and patronage network of the KMT, intimidation from China, and intentional idiocy of the media inveigh against putting too much trust in real democratic process.
Linda Gail Arrigo is Assistant Professor at Taipei Medical University. Professor Arrigo has been visiting Taiwan since the 1960s, where she was closely linked to the opposition movement, being deported for her role in the Kaohsiung Incident. Prof. Arrigo is an authority on human rights in Taiwan.
December 2nd, 2011  When: Friday, December 9, 2011 at 8:00pm until Monday, December 12, 2011 at 11:00pm
Where: Puli, Nantou County, Central Taiwan 埔里, 台灣
Taiwan Rainbow Family is going camping in the mountains of Puli at Huisun Forest Park on the full moon / lunar eclipse weekend of December 9-12, 2011. All are welcome to join! There is a river with hot springs in a secluded valley about an hour’s walk from the riverside campsite.
TRANSPORTATION
Motorbikes can possibly drive all the way to the camping site. Cars can park about an hour’s walk away. Buses run from Puli to Huisun — 2 or 3 daily, and then it’s an hour’s walk down to the river, but you’ll need a map or a guide. Google maps doesn’t show the track leading down to the river, but here is the location http://maps.google.com.tw/maps?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4GGNI_enTW456TW457&q=huisun+forest+
Check weather conditions and bring appropriate camping gear, enough food and water for yourself and some to share. Bring musical instruments, toys, books, knowledge, ideas, inspiration, peace and love~
This is a “pack it in, pack it out” leave no trace event. Check wiki or do a web search for more information on Rainbow Family and Rainbow Gatherings.
Check the FB invitation for updates, under the name: Taiwan Rainbow Full Moon Family Reunion 台灣彩虹家月圓團聚. Look forward to camping together in the beautiful natural environment with all love and light~
天狗食滿月的週末
到埔里山區的惠蓀林場露營
歡迎大家來幽靜的河谷相聚
距營地腳程一小時可泡溫泉
交通
可騎機車到營地
汽車停放地點距營地步行約一小時
從埔里到惠蓀的公車一天約兩三班
步行至河谷約一小時, 但需地圖或有人帶路
古歌地圖只標示位置, 無法看出走到河谷的小徑http://maps.google.com.tw/maps?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rlz=1T4GGNI_enTW456TW457&q=huisun+forest+
查看天氣狀況, 備妥露營用具, 帶足以自用及分享的飲水和糧食,樂器,玩具,書本,知識,想法,靈感,愛與和平
活動參加者需帶走垃圾不留痕跡
可上維基了解更多彩虹家聚會的相關資訊(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_Family)
在臉書本活動邀請頁查看最新訊息
期待與光和愛同在美麗的大自然露營
November 25th, 2011 By Trista di Genova, The Wild East
A friend asked my plans for this weekend, and at first I replied, “Not much.” But then I checked my schedule and realized: this is the potentially the perfect weekend, for everyone, not only to catch up on their socializing and networking, but to attend a book-signing by a prominent author, and take part in a lecture on Jung.
There are four very special events taking place this weekend: An advance book-signing event by Linda Arrigo, live music with The Red Cliff, a special Potluck anniversary at LOOP, and intellectual stimulation with the Taipei Discussion and Learning group.
Here is a proposed schedule for your utter enjoyment:
 Linder's got a new book, destined to be a bestseller in Taiwan.
Dear Friends,
If we haven’t met for a while, you might have forgotten that “Linda Arrigo” is the infamous foreign woman from the Formosa Magazine Incident of December 10, 1979 and the subsequent martial law trials (a.k.a. Kaohsiung Incident).
I have finally gotten my biography written in Chinese, a popular version,美麗的探險—艾琳達的一生, and it also has 10 pages of summary in English at the beginning, as well as historical pictures, many in color, that you might like– so you might want a copy even if your Chinese is limited.
Scott Simon, Tim Fox, and Gunther Wittome are in a picture near the end, and other Old Taiwan Hands you know like Lynn Miles and Dennis Engbarth appear in their youthful forms of long ago.
You are welcome to come to my book opening and see it! Saturday November 26, 3 PM, at the Hsinyi Eslite (Cheng Ping) bookstore, 3rd Fl, which is only a block from the MRT City Government station. It should be in bookstores soon, too.
Linda
 Saturday evening: Live music at 10pm with The Red Cliff @ BOBWUNDAYE 嘸問題 (means ‘no problem’ in Taiwanese), Taipei. No.77, Hoping E. Rd, Sec. 3 (between Anhe Rd. & Dunhua S. Rd.) 和平東路三段77號 (安和路及敦化南路間) [Tel. 02-2377 1772]
The Red Cliff are a rock/folk/jazz group comprised of two central members,
Mark Darvill (vocals, guitar) and Caleb Cole (vocals, bass, and… guitar) from England and the United States respectively. Formed shortly after their arrival to Taiwan in 2009, the Red Cliff incorporate elements of Rock and Roll, English and American folk, jazz and funk music. The Red Cliff features numerous original songs with driving melodies and technical instrumentation.
Veterans of Rock in their own countries, the Red Cliff are poised to dazzle the Taiwanese music scene with frequent regularity.
“紅色懸崖”是由二個來自英國和美國的大男孩, 馬克與凱樂伯(希望他們看到翻譯不會
抓狂@@…)組成的搖滾, 民謠及爵士樂團. 2009年來台不久, 就因緣際會的組了這個樂團, 曲風結合了搖滾, 英美民謠, 爵士及放克等音樂元素. 樂團本身也寫了許多原創的樂曲, 流暢且充滿活力的弦律加上令人激賞的彈奏技法, 讓習於一般台灣流行音樂的朋友也為之著迷!!
低消Minimum Charge: NT.200
Drink special: London Pride: NT.150, Kong Ludwig: 200
http://www.facebook.com/events/276654929038881/
 Saturday 6pm -?: 3rd Year Anniversary of Potluck & Music Circle, @ THE LOOP. 大安公園共享音樂餐會3年週年慶祝活動
LOCATION: LOOP music bar, Loop, B-1, #83 Ba De Rd, Sec 3, Taipei, 台北市八德路83號B1 (not far from Zhong Shao Dun Hua MRT), Taipei, Taiwan
台北共享音樂餐會potluck三週年慶party!! 免入場費
台北市八德路83號B1 TEL：25701009
2011-11-26 Pm18：00~？
Featuring Live Bands and entertainment! – Pan Africana, Blues Vibrations, Ballots Not Bullets, HUB, ReignDear, Cosmic Inversion, and other live musicians! As well as jugglers, hoopers, poi, drum jams, jamming, and more!!
現場音樂表演
其它娛樂
蔬食餐點及飲料（特定飲食有優惠價）
慈善募款
開放自由演出
Have you ever been to our Potluck in Da An Park? Well if you have or haven’t, you are cordially invited to our THREE year anniversary PARTY celebration.
This is NOT at Da An Park, it’s NOT a potluck, and it’s NOT on the usual first sunday. We will NOT cancel the first Sunday potlucks in October, November, and December….
This is IN ADDITION to those events. The difference is, this one, we will be at a live music venue with an indoor live stage, with an Amplified PA system!!
In other words, the music will be the focus, with musicians and other talents drawn directly from our Potluck family!! Our community has been growing now for THREE years! That’s 36 potlucks of people.. That means that we have had about 2000 people come and visit with us.
OK, so can we get all of you to return on NOV 26th?
There will be beverages and food provided (for sale) by The Loop
It’s very close to the intersection of Ba De and Dun Hua Roads, near the Zhong Xiao Dun Hua MRT.
We will have a raffle, and profits from the event will be used to Raise funds for The Sanctuary, an animal rescue program in North Taipei area
We are hoping to have some sponsors to raise funds for a good local cause!
Keep the community growing and the light shining….
Brian
Sunday evening: Lecture on Jung’s psychology with Taipei Discussion and Learning group: Wisteria Tea House, just south of the southwest corner of Daan park, about a block south of Subway sandwich shop, 台北市新生南路三段16巷1號 XingSheng Road, section 3, lane 16, number 1, Taipei, Taiwan
 Discussing and learning in Taipei. “JUNG’S PSYCHOLOGY AND THE CONDITION OF MAN”
Speaker: Sonja Dimoska
We will try to start at eight, so please try to be early.
This event is free, tea will be served. Donations are gladly accepted:)
This will be a set, moderated forum including a speech, question and answer time, and a mingle period afterwards for further discussion. Forum will be timed at: 5 min. introduction by moderator, 30 min. speech, 15 min. for questions, and then an open ended mingle time afterwards.
The goal of this forum is to promote learning and discussion in our community. We have a lot to learn from each other and a lot to talk about. This is not only about classical philosophy. This is about Philosophy of meaning, education, science, culture, religion, environment, etc.
Ethan Kegley and Alexander Stamatov are Directors. Contact them if you’d like to schedule a lecture on a topic.
September 28th, 2011  Photo and interview: Trista di Genova I was in the States, finishing my Bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering. Then I decided to come to Taiwan. The decision to enter medical school here was a long process!
The thing is I realized I really like the nature of medicine, how as doctors we can help so many people, so easily. No matter where I go, no matter what country it is, I can help people there. So this is the main reason I really like my profession and chose to study medicine.
I preferred to stay in the States, but have to take the financial part into consideration. What students pay here for tuition compared to the quality of education — well that ratio is pretty good! Then I came to TMU (Taipei Medical University) because it was the only school that offered scholarships for international students and actually set up an International Office to do it. I could see they really have a dedication to international students.
August 29th, 2011  By Trista di Genova, The Wild East
I met an experienced Australian radio producer last month. He’s been living in Tamshui for a few months (and Taiwan for almost five years), and after completing his contract with a well-known corporate giant, he again started looking for employment in media, teaching or tutoring. But he’s having a very hard time, and has almost come to the end of his rope here. Why? He says he finds discrimination – because of his accent (he’s not American!), his sex (Taiwan schools are now able to employ many more females that have come to Taiwan), and age discrimination (although he’s only 42) …
Here is a summary of our discussion. Please feel free to leave suggestions below.
The Wild East: Hi there! How are things going?
Damned (?) in Damshui: Not really good. I really need to find some work, preferably near Danshui, otherwise I’m going to literally starve. As I was telling you, I am way too old for buxibans (cram schools) that teach children. They just look at me and find some excuse to rush through the interview and get me out of the building. Have not really taught children since age 36-37, the time when the (Taiwan) age discrimination really starts kicking in. (I’m now 42).
This is a common problem with older male migrants here in Taiwan — just NO work. I know many that are totally miserable and have no hope for the future, French, Austrians, South Africans, and a few Americans – some escaping to small country towns… But they are all so poor and unhappy…. tutoring a few rich kids in tiny country towns, somewhere in outback Taiwan.
My contract at ### has finished (it was never much money anyway), and if I don’t get some work soon, I’m going to wind up dead. Seriously. Can’t take many more years of this, and am ‘stuck’ in Taiwan because all my stuff is here now.
The Wild East: Sorry to hear this. But I think it’s easier to hustle up some work than that. Go to the cram schools in your neighborhood and walk in, talk to their manager about if they need English teachers, that’s how I get bushiban teaching hours. I’ve heard they’re hurtin’ for teachers in Tamshui… you’re still youngish, like me… I talked to my friend Teacher Mike about your teaching there, and he said they prefer American accent. However, most Taiwanese seem unable to distinguish between the accents. And I know a Macedonian who has taught for years, telling everybody he’s American, even though he’s got a thick accent (but I think it sounds nifty… and he’s a great teacher!).
Otherwise, try forumosa.com and tealit.com, and ACI (agents), try that Facebook jobs page. I’d introduce you to my agent, but he just let me down badly recently, and I won’t be dealing with him anymore… gypped me on paying for my last job for him.
You can find a job with all of your qualifications and experience and social advantages (= being white! haha). Just gotta hustle! Try the universities, teaching broadcasting, journalism and whatnot… Hey the China Post is always hiring and they’re on the red line MRT. However, they’re total a**holes and will expect slave labor and to pay you like a Filipina for 6 nights a week….
I’m the one to talk to for journalism jobs, ’cause I’ve done them all, but only to say they’re few and far between out there, here in ‘Wan!
Hang in there.
Damned: There are only three cram schools in Danshui. I went to one, they almost laughed at me; it was all over their 30-year-old faces that they were talking to a ‘very old man’ (me)… I saw their ‘teachers’ — all North American, 25ish, all wearing caps and beach shorts. And the Giraffe one here prefers American accent. Hess are here. They just have very young Americans as well, and are very picky on image… I’m old, bald and skinny and do not look like an American, more EU look. With my experience, you don’t think that I have already investigated all avenues? Really, I have.
Being an American and a woman, you get a very different life here…. When the economic crisis hit in early 2008, many more North American women came to Taiwan, and they took the home tutoring work I had sometimes done — precious additional income. Even other Americans have told me this: young, American women currently have it made here in Taiwan.
Image is absolutely everything. I could be an illiterate from Miami, but if I’m female, below 36-37, and have relatively fair skin, I can make a very handsome sum of cash in Taiwan, teaching kids and teens. So no, sorry, cannot agree with you about Danshui. Only three chain cram schools… Also, Taiwanese parents NEVER want to deal directly with a ‘foreigner’. They always want a Taiwan middleman.
Believe me, you are not in the same position that I am in (and other foreigner ‘old men’), so you cannot see how impossible it is. In fact, most Americans in Taiwan do not have any interest in hearing this, as it does not really affect them (although it will affect even U.S. guys once they get ‘too old’ to teach in Taiwan, after what I consider the 36-37-year tipping point).
This is what I thought of your friend, when you told me he only wants ‘an American accent’, (even though I have heard this bullshit at least 700 times), I thought – ‘another selfish American asshole that doesn’t know the pain his discrimination causes AND doesn’t care WHAT idiot teacher he gets — as long as he/she has ‘American accent’.
Such people sometimes say, ‘This is what the parents want’… Although there is some truth to this, it is not the full story. Any competent buxiban owner (whether Taiwanese or Westerner) is able to tell xenophobic parents that this teacher has a ‘neutral’ accent that is very suitable for teaching standard English — an English accent that could come from anywhere. This solution used to happen to me, but now with the age problem, the influx of more North Americans, and the fact that many are women, the schools don’t even try to explain to the parents that accent is not an issue. ‘Here’s your 24-year-old, blonde girl from New York – and would you like fries and a Coke with that?’
As I said to you when you were here — I have known many FINE, highly qualified U.K. and Australian teachers (REAL teachers) that have abandoned Taiwan (and gone to Japan, Thailand and China) because here it’s more important to employ any moron with a U.S. accent (even a Bronx street accent!) than a qualified teacher from Sydney.
As for Australian accent, why do you think CNN Hong Kong employs six former Sydney newsreaders, plus three field reporters? It is because there is a middle-class east coast Australian accent that is perfectly understandable to Asians — from India to North Korea. Many Americans have actually complimented me on my accent, saying it is like a traditional accent from the far north, leading up to areas like Nova Scotia… So this accent preference (which amounts to total outright discrimination) is based on some bullshit Paul Hogan (Crocodile Dundee) stereotype. It’s like saying, all Americans probably talk like MC Hammer (Yo – break it down man, wat’s up man – check it out dude…), and maybe that’s what Taiwanese parents will adore hearing from their 11-year-old Kevin or TingTing!
RE: forumosa.com, tealit.com, and others — They’re mostly agents and chain schools — and desperadoes… And yes, I apply for those jobs too. Same old story — age and accent. Most schools that use agents are so absolutely hopeless at communicating with/treating Westerners in a fair way, that they think the far-away agent will do it all for them. But it never works… The Westerner spends all the time with the cram school boss, NOT the agent. For example, I have known Taiwan cram school bosses to phone agents because they are so xenophobic to even tell the teacher that there will soon be a public holiday and not to come in.
They don’t want to communicate with Westerners — or learn anything about our logic, way of life, thinking etc at all (yet they are teaching OUR language — how can they!). They just want a buxiban to make lots of relatively easy money from unsuspecting parents… So agents usually get the worst sorts of buxiban work – remote, hard-to-reach locations and owners who are totally closed to Western culture and practices. Of course, they also want a young American ‘Uncle McDonald’ to jump around like an idiot all day… A lot of the time, it’s about child-care, rather than any real education.
With accent, age and gender discrimination, life here is hell for me… never told you that last time we met. And it’s been like this a long time now.
I have now delivered my pamphlets to 5200 Danshui households ON FOOT. They are written in Chinese. Never got one email reply. My pamphlet was written by a Chinese advertising person.
The Wild East: Jesus H. Christ, this is horrible, really… wish I could be of more assistance…maybe I could put our discussion into an article for The Wild East addressing age, sex and accent discrimination in Taiwan, and see if others have better suggestions or perhaps leads…?
July 18th, 2011  Linda Arrigo takes visitors on tours of a White Terror era graveyard in east Taipei. Photo: Trista di Genova One of the most underappreciated intellectuals around, for decades Linda Gail Arrigo has stuck to her guns and stood up for human rights in Taiwan. She should be thanked for always being a truth-teller, and providing authorities with at times a much-needed cattleprod to their conscience [Note:Other publications have declined to publish this article, as for some Arrigo is a political and controversial figure.]
By Trista di Genova, The Wild East
I heard about Linda Arrigo (艾琳達; pinyin: Ài Líndá) through a friend of mine, who said that Linda lived a quiet life these days — comparatively speaking — with her horde of cats in the mountains ringing the Taipei basin, and seemed somewhat relieved to hear from old friends. 
My interest was also piqued to learn that Linda ran informal tours of a Taipei graveyard where victims of the White Terror era were buried. The graveyard was a few minutes’ walk from Taipei Medical University in east Taipei, where she teaches humanities.
Eventually, I made contact with Linda, took the tour and wrote a story about it for The China Post (my editors who’d lunched with Shih Ming-teh were furious, but that’s another story). For a woman in her 60s, she’s incredibly lively, animated, loquacious and fluent in all matters Taiwan. She reminded me of a bustling auntie, and perhaps because she is of Italian-American heritage she even bears a resemblance to members of my family. Even more beguiling, with her penchant for loud, colorful fashions and ever-ready grin, she’s the spitting image of Janis Joplin. 
In fact, the more I learned about Linda Arrigo the more I was amazed with this person. She first came to Taiwan as a teenager in 1963, aged 16, with her father, a military man. She married a Taiwanese and had one son with him, and after finishing graduate work at Stanford and a stint working in New York, she returned to Taiwan.
“For facts,” she wrote by email, “I was kicked out of Stanford in 1976 with a terminal masters. I got my Ph.D. 1996 finally from SUNY Binghamton. I worked at the Port Authority of NY and NJ to make some money before I finished my Ph.D. — that was 1986-89.”
For the past 40-plus years, Linda Arrigo’s lived through, and been at the nexus of every important event in Taiwan’s modern history: the Kaohsiung Incident, Martial Law and its lifting, the White Terror era, the Lin Family murders; seeking the release of political prisoners and justice for families of 2-28 victims; Lee Teng-hui’s historic presidency; Taiwan’s democratization; human rights and civil rights movements; speaking up for indigenous peoples and their naming and land rights. Read her article on Orchid Island’s aboriginal culture here.
In fact, I’d argue that if anyone is worthy of the title of Taiwan Xi-fu (“Taiwan daughter-in-law”) as well as numerous accolades and peace prizes for her life’s work, it must be Linda Gail Arrigo.
Yet for speaking out and being a much-needed advocate in all of these key areas, she’s often merely labeled and dismissed as ‘an activist’, what is surely a serious underestimation of her extensive contributions to bettering Taiwan’s society.
 With Lynn Miles, she recently edited and co-authored the book “A Borrowed Voice”, a seminal and meaty collection of contemporary articles about Taiwan’s human rights movement. You can’t find it in any Eslite or Caves because they won’t stock it, but this book should be on the shelf of every self-respecting Taiwan-lover, researcher and historian.
In it, a tale of intrigue is told. Taiwan is under martial law, and the KMT is taking extraordinary measures to prevent details getting out of the human rights situation in Taiwan. In this vacuum, intellectuals are arrested, interrogated, followed, harassed, put on trial, maybe even worse, but information is closely guarded and kept from the outside world. Cloak-and-dagger-type operations were necessarily carried out, to communicate to Amnesty International and the outside world in general what was going on in Taiwan. By collaborating with and helping mobilize an underground of human rights sympathizers that spanned from Japan to San Francisco, Lynn Miles and Linda Arrigo were critical players in the silent struggle that eventually managed to get the names of hundreds of political prisoners to the outside world – and ultimately assure their release.
Times sure have changed. Today, people usually know ‘Ai Linda’ for having been the American wife of Shih Ming-teh (施明德; pinyin: Shī Míngdé, a.k.a. Nori), a well-known Taiwanese dissident. Shih survived incarceration on Green Island during martial law, then avoided certain persecution and further prison time under the KMT administration by marrying an American, Linda (conveniently, this allowed her to stay in Taiwan, which she now considered her home). Shih quit the DPP in 2000 and later became the gadfly by leading the ‘Redshirt Rebellion’ in 2006 against then DPP President Chen Shui-bian, calling for Chen’s resignation; incidentally, this is a strange twist in plot, since Chen was Shih’s lawyer after the Kaohsiung Incident. But for this and other actions, Arrigo publicly denounced her fickle, high-profile, now ex-husband ‘a traitor’. They divorced in 1995.
As a result of taking a stand against opposition to Chen, often people mistakenly believe Linda is a staunch defender of the DPP (Democratic Progressive Party). It is true she was involved in its formation, since 1990, although she left in 1996 to join the Green Party that same year. But here again she has been one of the DPP’s most vocal critics, years before Chen’s and the DPP’s corruption scandals pointing out to DPP insiders (and documenting; she’s a gifted writer, notetaker and researcher) some of the Party’s most dangerously corrupt tendencies. Her opinion was sidelined and muffled, as is the tendency, since it is not good for someone’s ‘face’ to have one’s weaknesses laid out so plainly.
As she put it, “The DPP was not unhappy with me until my article “From Democratic Movement to Bourgeois Democracy” was published in Chinese — and that time also there was a lot of criticism of the DPP abandoning its principles.”
Today, most people seem unaware Linda Arrigo has long been an active member of the Green Party — in terms of power a fledgling organization in Taiwan, as it is around the world. She is a highly prized member of the Green Party; she assiduously attends their functions and is feted on her birthday.
In fact, everywhere she goes she seems to create a ‘frisson’. People recognize her on the street — almost every Taiwanese who knows anything at all seems to know who ‘Ai Linda’ is. And whenever she gets into a taxi, the driver almost invariably recognizes her from her voice, since she’s been the guest on many radio programs (taxi drivers listen to these shows religiously as they’re driving around).
“But please take out the stuff about me being a public figure, everybody knows that already, and so what,” she commented after reading a draft of this article, demonstrating the extent of her tendency toward self-effacing modesty.
But I continue in this vein. Once I went with Linda to the opening of a new film about Dr. and Mrs. Tien Chao-min, long-time human rights and pro-Taiwan independence activists. Her Chinese is so fluent she simultaneously translated the entire film to me. Afterwards, when Mrs. Tien addressed the theatergoers and invited questions from the audience, I prodded Linda to say something, anything. “What do I have to say?” she responded, too modestly. I urged her, saying “I’m absolutely sure they would welcome any comments you made, as a show of support.”
When she rose and began speaking, a buzz went through the room and there was even some spontaneous applause. Linda Arrigo is not only recognized, welcomed and well-loved in many freedom-loving circles, her opinion and advice is constantly sought out. Several people afterwards made their way over to her so they could make her acquaintance, or renew an old one.
As a busy professor at TMU, she is probably one of the most accessible instructors I’ve ever met. She often spends hours with both foreign and Taiwanese students, generously giving them her time and advice, individually. She often buys the more strapped students lunch, or invites them on group hikes and outings and field trips.
“This is nice as a topic,” she writes, “but much too openly admiring — don’t get labeled a softie for propaganda! Doesn’t sound like a journalist. Who are you writing for?
Okay, fair enough. Today, she fiercely criticizes the state of academia, as a ‘publish or perish’ world overflowing with bureaucratic pressures and paperwork, with its overemphasis on specializations in obscure, irrelevant areas of ‘expertise’. Academics are being forced to eschew the ‘big picture’ that can only be provided through a multi-disciplinary approach. Further, Taiwan’s academics are now pressured to publish in English, but they’re often ill-equipped to do so. These are some of the things she talks a LOT about these days — privately and publicly. Keep in mind her critical viewpoint has been unleashed upon a wide range of controversial issues for decades; for example, she’s been blacklisted since the 1970s by the US State Department for her outspokenness in anti-war criticism.
Yet, after getting to know her, she also seems, curiously, almost annoyingly, never angry. Why?
“I used to be rather depressed and depressing, but I went through a course of hypnotism three years ago, and it changed my style for the better, to pollyanna. Still colorful. The world may be going to hell in a handbasket, but I’m going along for the ride, and will still have fun.”
This article “needs some sarcastic edge”, she wrote, “like why Linda (and Lynn) is not working for the DPP? Or, how can the apparently grandmotherly figure be a raving revolutionary Marxist who went to Nicaragua in 1980?”
Indeed! What’s it like being an unabashed Marxist — no doubt you find yourself marginalized in different ways! And in what ways are you Marxist, really? W.E. await your response…
April 5th, 2011  Seán McCormack founded Animals Taiwan and more recently the Taiwan SPCA. He talks with The Wild East about how Jane Goodall inspired his life’s work, his recent work and successes, and some of the (mostly positive) current trends in Taiwan regarding animal protection.
By Trista di Genova, The Wild East
Trista: What happened in that fateful meeting between you and Jane Goodall? Can you talk about your experience with her?
Seán McCormack: I was fortunate to enjoy a three-hour meeting with Dr Jane Goodall in late 2004, while she was holed up in her hotel room with all her engagements canceled, due to what turned out to be a mild typhoon. She had learned from mutual friends that I rescued and rehomed animals, and asked me questions about the situation here. She then suggested I start an organisation to get all these like-minded individuals working together to truly make a difference. I was incredibly inspired, as Jane had been a lifetime hero of mine, and I immediately went on to Forumosa.com and told everyone there I was starting an animal-rescue organisation as a ‘mission from Goodall’, and several of those who responded ended up co-founding Animals Taiwan with me. I often get to meet Jane when she visits Taiwan, and she is always interested to hear about my latest projects. I’ve been honoured to receive a couple of hand-written letters from Jane encouraging me to carry on making a difference and always offering her support. I feel incredibly lucky to have such an inspiring person motivating me to keep going.
Trista: How have Animals Taiwan and animal rights, for lack of a better term, improved or changed in past few years since I last interviewed you?
Seán: Animals Taiwan seems not to have grown since I left in 2008; in fact, things seem to have scaled down somewhat, as they no longer offer 24-hour emergency rescue, and many of the plans we had for future growth don’t seem to have been implemented. As I understand it, Animals Taiwan is kept small simply because of a lack of proper organisational structure that would permit and encourage growth. They have done a great job, though, of carrying on helping dogs and cats in need. I’m not really privy to what goes on there, so I can’t comment too much and must profess that much of what I do know is based only on what I hear.
Animal welfare, though, has greatly improved, and I’m incredibly proud of Taiwan for the rapid progress it is making. The Animal Protection Laws have been revised a couple of times, and Taiwan recently had its first court case for animal abuse, with the perpetrator receiving a prison sentence for cruelty. Cats are no longer caught and killed in Taipei City (unless a complaint is received), and CNR is now the preferred method of stray-cat control. We are seeing a larger percentage of companion animals being microchipped and neutered, though there is still a lot of room for improvement. And we now have an SPCA in Taiwan, which I started working on in late 2008 and which really took off when others joined to help me co-found it in June 2009. I’m not with the SPCA currently, but I’m sure it will be hugely successful as it grows into a professionally run animal-welfare organisation.
Trista: What has happened with the CNR (capture/neuter/release) policy?
Seán: The Taipei City Government and National Taiwan University support the neutering of all stray animals, as do other local governments around Taiwan. The NTU has been funding a free spay-and-neuter clinic, run by LCA (Life Conservationist Association), an experienced animal-welfare organisation, and has neutered thousands of stray animals from all over north Taiwan in the last couple of years. Funding is running out, though, but I hear LCA will be running their own clinic built on more sustainable practices.
Trista: What new services are there to help Taiwan animal owners adopt, find new homes, and what has been your role in them?
Seán: The newest service for helping people adopt, rehome, or rescue animals is the Taiwan SPCA, which I co-founded in 2009 after starting work on it in late 2008. The SPCA will, among other projects, be running adoption shops, where people can adopt animals that the SPCA has rescued or confiscated, or which have been supplied by local kill pounds. I am also co-founding an Wulai-based rescue-and-rehoming centre as well as a national, wiki-based animal-rescue network, which will help individuals from local cells of like-minded people who take on certain roles necessary to rescue and rehome animals in need; the cells will also get support and guidance from other cells around the country through the wiki-based network. We hope to have both these projects up and running later this year.
Trista: Do you see any positive larger trends in Taiwan that you’d like to discuss?
Seán: I think we are seeing a trend towards healthier diets for our companion animals, which I’m really happy to see, as I’ve been promoting healthier, non-processed food for dogs and cats since I started getting media attention. We’re even seeing raw food being sold in pet stores, which is just great to see. People are realising that they have been fooled by clever marketing into believing that processed pellets are healthier for our animals than fresh, species-appropriate meaty bones with optional supplements. People all over the world are waking up and realising that our grandparents’ dogs and cats lived longer, healthier lives fed on meaty bones and table scraps — the diet that dogs have thrived on for thousands of years. I’m very proud to see this trend in Taiwan, and I will carry on doing whatever I can to ensure it continues, so that more dogs and cats can enjoy better health.
Trista: What media attention have you been getting (specifics, also any awards)?
Seán: I have been in the media a few times recently, promoting the message that cruel, medieval devices like gin traps do not belong in a beautiful, advanced country like Taiwan. We appeared in several papers and TV news programs, including the Apple Daily and FTV.
I have never received an award for my animal-welfare work, though I have just been nominated for the Hong Kong SPCA’s Canine Hero Award, for achievements towards the rescuing and rehoming of dogs, for which I am incredibly honoured. I have also been advised that I may apply for a special APRC for my contributions to the Republic of Taiwan, which I am now in the process of taking advantage of.
Trista: What are 3 (or more if you wish) things you’d like to see changed in terms of prevention of cruelty to animals in Taiwan in the next few years?
Seán: What three changes would I like to see? 1. I’d like to see all the Taiwanese animal-welfare organisations adopt international standards, because many local groups are seriously lacking when it comes to the treatment of the animals in their care, with many keeping dogs and cats in tiny wire-floor cages or in other inhumane conditions. 2. I would like to see all organisations work together to improve the local adoption rates; organisations seem to dedicate all their resources to rescuing and publicizing but not enough to getting the animals into good homes — that needs a huge shift in public thinking, but that is what these organisations should be working towards if they truly want to make a difference. 3. I would like to see the root of the problem properly addressed, with breeders licensed, public education about responsible pet care and adopting instead of buying, of animals being microchipped at sale or adoption, and people fined for allowing unneutered pets to roam free. These are just a few of the root causes, and there are more that I would love to see addressed. 4. I would like to see inhumane trapping devices eradicated, and our Wulai rescue group (WAGS) will be doing a lot to make that happen.
Trista: Can you describe your recent experience carrying out animal rescues?
Seán: Recently, we haven’t been able to do too many rescues because our rescue van is out of commission, but I’ve been lucky to have others step up to assist. Recent rescues of note include an injured duck who had been dumped in a park pond, many dogs caught in gin traps and snares and consequently lost a limb, and an aggressive husky whom the police and fire department couldn’t get to leave a convenience store. We also have in our care a Formosan ferret badger, an endemic species that is now endangered; he, too, lost a limb to an illegal gin trap.
Trista: Could you talk a little more about gin traps, when and why are they used, by whom?
Seán: A gin trap is a trapping device that’s illegal to use in Taiwan but legal to buy and sell — go figure. They are used by people too lazy to hunt, and are often left unchecked for days at a time, in which time they maim or kill endangered wildlife as well as huge numbers of cats and dogs. They basically clamp shut on the limb of whichever animal is unfortunate enough to step into them in an attempt to get at whatever bait is placed nearby, eventually leading to that limb falling off or being chewed off by the victim. Some have even harmed people. They are used to catch wildlife, as deterrents to keep animals off (usually illegal) farmland, and for killing rats in or near restaurant kitchens.
Trista: So what exactly happened, why’d you leave Animals Taiwan? And how do you make your bread and butter now, then?
Seán: I was the Founder and Executive Director at Animals Taiwan, and I left because I simply could not see the organisation growing effectively with its lack of structure, which really fell apart after we became a registered NGO headed by a board of directors. I felt I lacked the leadership abilities to keep everyone focused on the organisation’s goals, and so I stepped down as ED. I didn’t actually leave the organisation, but let’s just say there was no suitable role made available to me after I made that move. I decided to start the SPCA to put my vision of an animal inspectorate into fruition, and a similar situation occurred there, and I left as the SPCA was about to become properly registered. I readily accept that I currently lack the leadership skills to keep everyone working as a coherent, well-structured entity–the kind of leadership that both organisations need if they are to fulfill their huge potential–and that is why I am comfortable leaving. My goals are to see these organisations being effective in Taiwan, not to satisfy an ego or a need to control them. I’m very proud of my ability to get these things started, and I am happy to leave them for others to run, knowing that they will eventually adopt proper structures and have the kind of leadership to really make them effective.
I’m currently working as a writer and editor for some overseas publications.
Trista: Is it really your lack of leadership skills, or a lack of interest in taking on all the responsibilities and/or bureaucratic tasks entailed in leading an organization?
Seán: Well, of course it’s both. I don’t have the skills, but, also, I’m not a fan of bureaucratic procedures, nor of dealing with people’s issues. I’ve learned that my strength lies in encouraging other to join my projects and not in running them myself. I much prefer being involved with the ‘front line’ doing all the hands-on stuff, and leaving the meetings and power struggles to others.
Trista: You recently moved, right? How many dogs do you currently have under your protection? Are they waiting for homes?
Seán: Right now, I have my own eight dogs as well as three in need of good homes, including Hoss the husky, Buster the chihuahua mix, and Jino the tugou amputee. We also have Wasabi, who has recovered beautifully from skin disease and is now available for adoption. They can all be found on our Facebook page.
Trista: How can people contribute, donate and get involved in the cause?
Seán: If people want to get involved or donate, the best way is to join our Facebook page, as we will be keeping everyone updated as to our latest projects. We generally accept donations only for specific rescues, and we invite people to contribute directly to individual expenses, such as the vet bills or even gas for the car to get us out to an animal in need of help.
Trista: I’m tempted to ask the personal question, “Why don’t you have a girlfriend?” but maybe that is not so appropriate, I don’t know. 
Sean: I’ve found that most women (or their parents at least) don’t believe I make a good long-term prospect, because my priorities seem to lie elsewhere. So although I’ve been lucky enough to attract some great women because of the work I do, it’s that work that eventually causes relationships to erode. Waking up to the mess left by my incontinent dogs can also be an attraction killer.  I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I may be single on and off for life, and I’m happy with that.
ANIMAL RESCUE CONTACT:
Taiwan Animal S.O.S.
An animal-rescue organization operating in northern Taiwan, dealing with everything from companion animals to injured farm and wild animals 我們是一個在台灣北部進行動物救援工作的組織,救援對象包含所有需要幫助的同伴動物,各種農場動物以及野生動物
Contact Us 聯絡方式
www.spca.org.tw
Office Headquarters 協會總部 Hours 上班時間 : Monday through Friday 週一到週五 10:30 AM to 5:30 PM Phone 電話 : (02) 2312–1914
March 20th, 2011  By Trista di Genova, The Wild East
Rock Starkey, owner of Tin Pan Alley, talks with The Wild East about his entrepreneurial experiences after setting out with a mobile pizza truck in southern Taiwan. He urges expats to pool their efforts and start their own businesses
THE WILD EAST: What brought you here to Taiwan, and what has kept you here?
ROCK STARKEY: I came to Taiwan on my way back to Greece where I lived a couple of years prior to Taiwan. I fell in love with the wild ways of the early days here and stayed. The 90′s in Taiwan have really got to compare to just about any insane artsy scene from anywhere and anytime in history. I really just got comfortable with the laissez-faire attitude of Taiwan’s people and authorities and have been able to do (get away with) lots of really fun things and have even had the good fortune of getting the government to pay for most of it. I’ve thrown several free parties that got budgets from the government but still turned out to be pretty wild events. That sort of thing made the idea of leaving Taiwan laughable. To do what? Go home and get hassled by the man for driving without a shirt on?
THE WILD EAST: Why and how did you start a mobile pizza joint?!
ROCK STARKEY: I’ve always planned on having a food establishment, always planned on it having some kind of stage so as to host musical events as well. That’s what we have going now as Tin Pan Alley in Tainan. We started off in a Pizza Truck, and we did the night markets here for about a year before we found a great location in the middle of everything and built the place ourselves.
 Gourmet pizza delivers in southern Taiwan. ROCK STARKEY: Actually, we’re still kind of building on it. It seems like we’ll never be totally finished, but that makes it a fun ongoing project, and means that we change with the times and to fit new needs and wants.
THE WILD EAST: Where has your mobile pizza joint traveled?
ROCK STARKEY: When we were mobile we went all over Taiwan really. We lived in Wulai for most of the mobile days but, when we came down to Tainan for the MayJam which happens every year, we fell in love with the Tainaners and the Tainanese, and of course in May the weather is still pretty nice. June-August is boiling, uggh.
THE WILD EAST: Did you have prior experience in pizza-makin’ or starting a business?
ROCK STARKEY: I actually have about as much experience running a business in Taiwan as doing just about anything else I’ve done here. I had my first restaurant in Taichung about 10 years ago. After that I opened a kindergarten with no license which lasted about a year and a half before the lack of license prevented our remaining open. Then I drifted around Hualien and Taipei for a while before starting the mobile pizza truck. The original idea with that was to hit every festival in Taiwan, sell pizzas, sell beers, what-have-yas hotdogs and shindigs. That was awfully fun, then my wife got pregnant and we decided it would be better to settle down.
THE WILD EAST: What have been the greatest challenges, payoffs to doing this?
ROCK STARKEY: I think operating a restaurant in Taiwan is exceptionally challenging for a foreigner. Really, the money you can make as a teacher is about as good and some months better for about 1/4 the hours worked. The stress is sometimes just not really worth it, but then, I can’t really imagine punching a clock for a person who treats children’s education as an assembly line affair.
THE WILD EAST: How has it worked out so far?
ROCK STARKEY: I don’t know, I’d like to someday be able to say it’s working great and I feel totally free, but the truth is a job is a job in the end and we’re pretty much all in the same position since we aren’t smart enough as a group to put our efforts together and reap the benefit of collective living and working. Instead we all separate our resources (our brains) and work helter-skelter, mimsy-pimsy all over the place, and let our efforts help other people get rich. Pretty stupid if you ask me, but I can’t find people brave enough to collectively start a school, for example. It doesn’t cost much to start up and if it were entirely teacher-run, imagine how fun and effective it could be. Sigh.
THE WILD EAST: Is it like the only decent pizza joint in Tainan?
ROCK STARKEY: We aren’t the only pizza in Tainan, but we are the only place that has served for example homemade hummus and goat cheese with sun-dried tomatoes on a curry infused crust with the option of spicy beef vindaloo on top. We’re the only ones who do that kind of thing.
 The new, more fixed pizza joint. ROCK STARKEY: We pay our taxes like good citizens and we have to as we have competitors who keep us on our toes by calling the cops for any possible infringement. Fortunately we dotted our I’s and crossed our T’s. The sad part for us is that we opened where we did because we are in a business district and we expected to be able to make plenty of noise. We don’t have neighbors for blocks and blocks, but we still have to deal with noise complaints, because, it only takes one asshole calling the cops to stop a party. It’s easy to find a person willing to be that asshole since when we opened we made a pretty big splash on the scene here in Tainan and drew the wrath of competing businesses. We’ve been talking with the cops and with local politicians (I actually got to chat with the guy who recently smacked a KMT guy and as a result the Chinese delegate wouldn’t come to Tainan; that was cool). Anyhow, we’re hoping to be able to get away with more this summer, but we’re going to have to build back up to it, test the waters and see if there are still any snakes.
March 14th, 2011  Mark and Heather Hahn, from Mark's Facebook page. It happened in the early hours of Saturday, Jan. 22.
Many may have missed the short piece published in the Taipei Times, detailing that: “A 32-year-old British man was hit and killed by a taxi in Taipei City early on Saturday morning. Taipei police said Mark Paul Bennett was hit as he was crossing at the corner of Jilin Road and Minquan E Rd at about 3am …”
Police said the 70-year-old taxi driver of the taxi, Chen Chin-tsang (陳金藏), was driving illegally; by law cabbies must be under the age of 68. Chen was charged with accidental homicide in the workplace and fined for driving a taxi illegally. Police said Chen, as well as his passenger, said the taxi was crossing the junction on a green light…
The case is still ongoing, but the family hopes it can be stressed to people “the importance of checking taxi driver’s license when taking a cab.” They added that the light on that street corner was out for a few months and that it was fixed less than a day after the accident.
I didn’t know Mark personally, but I heard about what happened from a still-stunned Charlie Chang at a Da An Park Sunday picnic a week later. Mark Bennett was “the friendliest chap you ever knew,” Charlie said, shaking his head, “the friendliest I’ve ever met in Taipei, a great guy. Great people die…”
Charlie had just attended the funeral on Friday, Jan. 28th, at a Catholic church on Minsheng E. Rd. At the funeral service were roughly 70 people, he said, mostly foreigners, although many of Mark’s Taiwanese friends and work colleagues were there at his funeral. Mark was equally a friend to the local people, it has been pointed out.
Afterwards, about 30 attendees held a get-together at the Sterling Bar in Mark’s remembrance, and then moved to Revolver, where Mark had spent his last evening…
There was something about the suddenness of Mark’s loss that struck me, and how little public means for his friends to talk about their grief and pay tribute to him. True, traffic accidents are apparently the Number One Killer of foreigners in Taiwan, and everyone needs to be aware of how — er “offensively defensive” I call it — one must be in this chaotic, hyperurbanized environment. But when the tables were turned, when another British national was involved in a hit-and-run accident this past year that took the life of a Taiwanese motorcyclist, an anti-foreigner media circus ensued. So this loss of one of our own in the foreign community by an aged taxi driver seemed to me, at least, so … anticlimactic, treated by authorities as little more than another traffic fatality.
Nevertheless, the sad news of Mark’s loss spread like wildfire through word-of-mouth, Forumosa.com threads, and through the Taiwan football network, since he was an avid footballer. The Taipei Animals described Mark in an announcement as “a member of our Taiwan and football community … a former Taipei Animal, English teacher and good friend to many of us.”
It was very clear to me that Mark is still acutely missed here in Taiwan, not just among his many friends, but his girlfriend, Heather Hahn whom he planned to marry, as well as his shocked parents. I approached Heather to talk more about Mark, his life, his plans and contributions.
Friends of Mark, please feel free to post your tribute and remembrances of him below. As for myself, somehow I feel instinctively that Mark was a friend to all of us, even to those such as myself who unfortunately hadn’t met him yet.
 Mark Bennett and Heather Hahn, from Mark's Facebook page... Heather: I met Mark over the summer at a pool party. I’d seen him at a drum’n'bass party the week before and he had seen me. When I showed up at the pool party he walked right up to me and said, “You’re Heather right?” From that moment on we were inseparable. Mark loved Taiwan. He loved the people he met here, the foreigners and locals, too. He felt like Taiwan was a place you could do anything. If you wanted to be a DJ you could, Fashion Designer, go for it. People could do what they wanted and they’d have all the support they needed. We were planning to move down south in the fall, spend another year teaching and saving money. Mark was never shy about telling me or anyone of our friends that he wanted to marry me. The week before the accident Mark had told me that his real reason for wanting to move to the south and save up money was so that he could buy me a ring and pay for a wedding. I was all ready to start my life with him.
Trista: Would you like to share some other remembrances of his life?
Heather: This is what I’ve written: Mark and I liked to spend time out and about the city, just walking. Mark loved to walk, whether it was in nature or through the city. We’d walk from Taipei Main to C.K.S. Memorial or across the bridge between ShiLin and Neihu. If he didn’t have anything else to do he’d just walk. On his first day in Taiwan he walked all across the city, just to acquaint himself with his new home. He made friends easily, was a likable guy, who loved that people in Taiwan were always looking out for each other. He had strong religious and political views, and was planning to give a lecture on his libertarian ideals, and even try his hand at a stand-up comedy routine someday (though he said that he hoped the two weren’t at the same time). He was very caring and romantic. He loved that we could laugh at each other, just have fun and entertain each other. We could get lost in our own little world if we needed to, have hour-long discussions about anything and everything, even if we were in the middle of a crowded room. He was excited to be a father one day, to finally start a family and to love and support his children and show them the world.
And this is from his mother, Viv:
“Mark was a very special person. He was passionate about the things that mattered to him. He was passionate about his family, football, music, culture, Taiwan, his friends in Taiwan and at home and teaching. All his life he tried to make a difference to people, rules, systems, prejudice, and life itself. We were so proud of him. For us, his family, we have not only lost a brother, a son and a friend we have lost the future; the future he and Heather were building together, the wedding, the children, the life they would have led. It is now all gone and all our lives have been changed forever. We are sad and angry, lost and lonely without the special person that was Mark.”
Heather: Mark’s and my friends, Cat, Nicky and Andrew, helped me and Mark’s mom, Viv, and brother, Matt, with all the arrangements. We were also lucky enough to find an English-speaking funeral director. Mark was Catholic and we wanted to have a Catholic service for him so Cat helped us with that part because neither Viv nor I knew what we needed to do for a Catholic funeral. Viv and Matt decided to have the funeral here because they realized that this was where the majority of his friends were, and where his life was now. Mark’s mom took some ashes home to be scattered in a memorial garden where she’s purchased a tree with a plaque in his honor. There will be a Celebration of Life for Mark in England on April 2nd…Approximately 150 of Mark’s friends from when he was a toddler to the present day will be present to remember, reflect and rejoice in the person that was Mark. School friends, teachers, family, work colleagues for his time in London will share their time with Mark-a fitting celebration for such an exceptional guy.”
Trista: Is there some way people can help the family with the funeral costs?
Heather:There is a fund for people to donate with the costs of the funeral arrangements:
Bank of Taiwan’s routing number : 026012470
Account number: 054 004 078892
Name of the account holder: Catherine Thomas
If you are in Taiwan all you need is 004 (Bank of Taiwan code) plus the account number.
As an update, a Chinese report in the Apple Daily, which incidentally misspelled his name, said that Mark moved to Taiwan in May. However, he’d actually lived in Taiwan for a few years before, and had just moved back here in May.
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