Taiwan compatriots fought to liberate nation

An exhibition of documents detailing a special task force from Taiwan opened over the weekend in Fuzhou, Fujian province, highlighting the history of Taiwan compatriots resisting Japanese aggression supported by the Communist Party of China.

On display are some 240 archival documents and historical photographs — about 30 of which are being shown for the first time — that detail the courageous deeds of the Taiwan volunteer corps, a group of patriotic compatriots from Taiwan who fought Japanese aggression on the Chinese mainland.

The founder of the force, Li Yu-bang, was born in 1906 in Taiwan, and his family migrated to the island from the Chinese mainland five generations ago.

The Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) government was forced to cede Taiwan to Japan following a defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War in 1895, and Li grew up under Japanese colonial rule, witnessing the injustices and oppressions brought by the Japanese.

In 1924, Li planned and carried out an attack on a Japanese police station in Taipei. The act of defiance made him a target, leading to him fleeing to the mainland with help from fellow resistors. He eventually enrolled in the Whampoa Military Academy in Guangzhou, where he continued to nurture his revolutionary ideals.

After Japan launched a full-scale invasion of China in 1937, Li became convinced that Taiwan's fate was tied to the motherland. "To save Taiwan, we must first save our motherland. For the success of Taiwan's revolution, the victory of the nation's resistance is essential," he said.