Political Life
Peng returned to Taiwan and in 1957, at age 34, he became the youngest full professor at the National Taiwan University. While Peng was a professor and chairman of the Department of Political Science from 1961 to 1962, he attracted the attention of Chiang Kai-shek and other KMT leaders. Chiang appointed Peng as the advisor to Taiwan’s delegation to the United Nations, then the highest political position held by any Taiwanese, and hinted of future high-level governmental appointments.
My inner thoughts were in turmoil. The government and party bosses had made a great mistake in sending me to New York. This experience finally politicized me, and I was to lead a dual life thereafter, for many months, until I made a final commitment to challenge the dictatorship with a public demand for reform.
In 1964, Peng and two of his students, Hsieh Tsong-min (謝聰敏) and Wei Ting-chao (魏廷朝), created a manifesto advocating the overthrow of the Chiang regime and the establishment of a democratic government in Taiwan. The three painstakingly printed 10,000 copies in secret, but before the manifesto could be distributed, Peng and his students were arrested. They languished in jail for several months before being tried for sedition by a military court. Peng was sentenced to eight years of imprisonment but his case attracted worldwide attention. Bowing to the increasing international pressure, Chiang Kai-shek released Dr. Peng from military prison 14 months later, but placed him under house arrest for life with strict surveillance.
By 1968, his house arrest had become so suffocating that friends and the Swedish chapter of Amnesty International helped plan for Peng's escape from Taiwan. In 1970, Peng managed to travel by plane to Hong Kong and from there to Sweden with a forged passport. He was granted political asylum in Sweden, but despite the freedom he enjoyed in Europe, he decided to pursue an appointment at the University of Michigan. Both the KMT and the Communist Party in China strenuously objected, but the United States granted his request for a visa and Peng arrived in Michigan in August 1970. During his time at Michigan, he wrote his autobiography A Taste of Freedom.
While in exile, Peng continued to be a leading figure in Taiwan politics and American foreign policy issues. In 1981, he co-founded the Formosan Association for Public Affairs (FAPA), a Taiwanese lobbying organization based in Washington D.C. Peng served as FAPA’s president from 1986 to 1988 and chaired the Asia-Pacific Democracy Association in 1989. He also testified on Taiwan issues before the United States Congress on several occasions.
Read more about this topic: Peng Ming-min
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