Justice Restored? ─ Between Rehabilitation and Reconciliation in China and Taiwan

How should past injustices be addressed in order to allow victims and perpetrators to overcome their memories and move on towards a better future? After the end of the Cultural Revolution and the period of martial law, these questions confronted the leadership on both sides of the Taiwan Straits. The process of finding answers and implementing them has been handicapped by historical, political and cultural factors. As party interests were at stake in terms of political legitimacy and social cohesion, policies of rehabilitation and compensation had to be adopted. The authors approach the issue from the perspectives of groups and individuals affected: intellectuals, indigenous peoples, political widows, or religious groups. The texts are based on a wide variety of sources and make relevant secondary literature from Taiwan and China accessible to the reader.

Agnes Schick-Chen is associate professor at the Department of East Asian Studies, University of Vienna. She lived in Taipei, Nanjing and Hong Kong for reasons of study and research.
Astrid Lipinsky is junior professor at Wuerzburg University and lecturer at the University of Vienna. She is an international expert on gender and women’s rights issues.