Taiwan celebrates the 2014 World Freedom Day

TAIPEI, Taiwan - Today is World Freedom Day, which marks the kick off for several celebrations in the week to commemorate this special day.

World Freedom Day is especially celebrated in Taiwan and South Korea due to the fact that Jan. 23, 1954 was the return date for prisoners in the Korean War.

As those soldiers landed in Keelung, they received warm greetings from Taiwanese people.

People also rang the freedom bell 23 times in every city in Taiwan in celebration. The Republic of China established the date as World Freedom Day ever since then.

As it was the 60th anniversary of the return of these soldiers, the Taipei Veterans Home held a celebration yesterday and invited the Taipei Jingmei Girls High School honour guard and colour guard to perform for retired soldiers.

Hsiung Chi-chih, manager of the Taipei Veterans Home, said a lot of people had already forgotten this history. The decision to come to Taiwan that these soldiers made actually played an important role in stabilizing the government at that time.

Therefore, it is an event worthy of remembrance, stated Hsiung.

In order to help more people understand this history, Hsiung also decided to publish a commemorative album. The main goal of celebration activities is to let people reflect on our past and think about the true essence of democracy and freedom.

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Taiwan celebrates the 2014 World Freedom Day