TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE: At a forum overshadowed by KMT protesters, foundation chairman Rainer Eppelmann said letting people tell their stories is as crucial as justice
Taipei Times
Date: Jan 20, 2018
By: Stacy Hsu / Staff reporter
Leaders of a German government-funded foundation tasked with assessing the legacy

Federal Foundation for the Study of Dictatorship in East Germany chairman Rainer Eppelmann, second left, talks about his nation’s experiences in dealing with the Socialist Unity Party of Germany and its ill-gotten assets at a forum held by the Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee at Taipei’s Yue Yue Bookstore yesterday.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) yesterday stressed the importance of dialogue, education and preservation of memories when dealing with a country’s authoritarian past, after the legislature last month passed the Act on Promoting Transitional Justice (促進轉型正義條例).
Federal Foundation for the Study of Communist Dictatorship in East Germany chairman Rainer Eppelmann and foundation deputy director Robert Gruenbaum discussed their country’s experience of handling the Socialist Unity Party of Germany and its illegally obtained assets at a public forum in Taipei at the invitation of the Executive Yuan’s Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee.
The foundation was established in 1998 by the Bundestag to clarify historical truths and promote human rights education. [FULL STORY]