Taiwan Official Apologizes for Nazi-themed High-school Performance

HAARETZ Dec 24, 2016

Students wear Nazi uniforms in a parade, raise arms in 'Sieg Heil' salutes at recent school festival.
Taiwan's education minister apologized Saturday after a recent Nazi-themed performance by high
school students sparked outrage, state-run media reported.
During a recent school festival in Hsinchu City, some students wore Nazi uniforms in a parade and
raised their arms in "Sieg Heil" salutes, the Central News Agency reported.
"I deeply apologize for this," Education Minister Pan Wen-chung said after the incident was widely
reported in local media and countries, including Israel and Germany, expressed concerns.
"We strongly condemn this tasteless occurrence and call on the Taiwanese authorities ... to initiate
educational programs which would introduce the meaning of the Holocaust and teach its history,"
Asher Yarden, the representative of the Israel Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei, said in a
statement.
"We are deeply disappointed that this took place in Taiwan, where International Holocaust
Remembrance Day has been marked for the first time less than a year ago," Yarden said.
The German Institute Taipei said it was shocked to see the display of Nazi symbols and uniforms
during the school event. "It is unfortunate that the students were apparently not aware that these Nazi
[symbols] were of human contempt and oppression," the institute said.
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Vocabulary
spark, v., to cause the start of something, especially an argument or fighting:
- The recent interest-rate rises have sparked new problems for small businesses.
- The proposal would spark a storm of protest around the country.
- A discarded cigarette sparked a small brush fire.
- Faulty wiring could have sparked the explosion.
outrage, n., a feeling of anger and shock:
- When the truth came out, there was public outrage.
- Her speech caused outrage among the gay community.
- You really must bring this outrage to an end.
- The decision has provoked outrage from human rights groups.
incident, n., something that happens, especially something unusual or unpleasant:
- His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident.

- Am I at risk because of some incident in my past?

Note: Incident is used mainly in journalism or in formal contexts. In everyday English, people
usually say something happened rather than talking about an incident:
4.

- Am I at risk because of something that happened in my past?

condemn, v., to criticize something or someone strongly, usually for moral reasons:
- The film was condemned for its sexism.
- The Opposition has condemned the government's proposed tax increases.
- The government issued a statement condemning the killings.
- The laws have been widely condemned (= by many people, groups etc) by human rights
groups.

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6.

occurrence, n., something that happens:

- Flooding in the area is a common occurrence.
- This was, of course, an extremely rare occurrence.
- Traffic jams are now a daily occurrence.
- It's still not possible to accurately predict the occurrence of earthquakes.
call on sb., phrasal verb, to ask someone in a formal way to do something:
- I now call on everyone to raise a glass to the happy couple.
- Western countries have been called on to support the democratically elected government.
- Environmental Health officer Richard Hallows admitted yesterday they are facing a problem
and called on the public to help them.
- The human rights group has called on the US to end the death penalty.

7.

- The President called on the wealthy countries for financial aid after the floods destroyed much
of the country's agriculture.
initiate, v., [formal] to make something begin:
- They wanted to initiate a discussion on economics.
- The organization may initiate legal action against you.
- Bacteria then enters the wound and initiates infection.

8.

- Who initiated the violence?

holocaust, n., a situation in which many things are destroyed and many people killed, especially
because of a war or a fire:
- A nuclear holocaust (= destruction caused by nuclear weapons) would leave few survivors.
Her grandparents were killed during the Holocaust.
- Taipei, Jan. 27 (CNA) The representative offices of Israel and Germany held an event in Taipei

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Wednesday in commemoration of the victims of the Holocaust, marking the first time the two
offices have co-hosted such an event on International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
remembrance, n., the act or process of remembering an event in the past or a person who is dead:
- A service was held in remembrance of local soldiers killed in the war.
- They wore black in remembrance of those who had died.
- NASA named a day of remembrance to honor the astronauts killed in the Colombia,

Challenger and the Apollo disaster.

- Sarah whispered softly in remembrance of her friend who had passed away two years ago.
10. contempt, n., a strong feeling of disliking and having no respect for someone or something:
- She looked at him with contempt.
- Her face showed clearly the contempt she felt for them.
- The opinions of the public should not be ignored or treated with contempt.
- He had a deep contempt for authority.
11. oppression, n., cruel and unfair treatment of people, especially by not giving them the same
freedom, rights, etc. as other people:
- They suffered years of political oppression.
- Am I a man who fears oppression or death?
- Every human being has the right to freedom from oppression.
- There are some oppressions you can't remain silent about.