Peace Memorial Day speech template (Taiwan)
Published 10 October 2026 · Date checked on 5 October 2026 · Written by the Cue Card Converter team at EventProgrammer, event production professionals
Peace Memorial Day is a public holiday in Taiwan on 28 February. It remembers the victims of the February 28 Incident of 1947. A confrontation in Taipei on 27 February over contraband cigarettes led to protests the next day that spread across the island, followed by a violent crackdown in which many people were killed or imprisoned. The day became a public holiday in 1997. Memorial ceremonies are held, including at 228 Peace Memorial Park in Taipei, and flags fly at half-mast.
- Date
- February 28
- Next dates
- Sunday 28 February 2027
Monday 28 February 2028
Wednesday 28 February 2029 - Country
- Taiwan
- Tone
- Solemn – remembrance
- Typical events
- Memorial ceremonies at 228 monuments and parks, universities, human rights organisations, Taiwanese community associations abroad and civic groups on or near 28 February.
- Length
- 167 spoken words · about 1.5 min at 130 words a minute · 4 cue cards
The Peace Memorial Day speech, ready as cue cards
A complete host script in 4 cards, about 1.5 minutes of speaking. Open it in the editor to add your names, change the card size or highlights, and print.
- IN MEMORY1 / 4
Good morning. My name is {Your name}, and on behalf of {Organisation} I thank you for coming. On Peace Memorial Day, we gather to remember those who lost their lives or their freedom in 1947, and the families who carried that loss for decades. - WHAT HAPPENED2 / 4
On 27 February 1947, a confrontation over contraband cigarettes in Taipei ended in a shooting. The next day, protests began and soon spread across the island. They were followed by a harsh crackdown in which many people were killed, imprisoned or disappeared. For many years, families could not speak openly about their loss. - SILENCE AND FLOWERS3 / 4
Please stand, and let us remember in silence the victims, their families and all who suffered.
[ONE MINUTE OF SILENCE]
Thank you. I now invite {Representative} to lay flowers on behalf of all of us.
[FLOWERS LAID IN SILENCE] - CLOSING4 / 4
Remembering is the first step towards understanding. Today we honour the victims by speaking of what happened, listening to their families and holding on to peace. Thank you for being here. Please take a quiet moment before you leave.
Red is used only for names, titles, organisations, dates, times and section headings. Replace the words in {curly brackets} with your own details; lines in [SQUARE BRACKETS] are stage directions and are not read aloud.
How to adapt it
- Families and communities in Taiwan remember this history in different ways. Keep the script factual and centred on the victims and on peace, and avoid party politics, current affairs and questions of political status.
- If descendants of victims attend, speak with them beforehand about the programme, and ask before naming anyone or sharing a family's story.
- Keep the setting simple and quiet: dark clothing, white flowers, no applause and calm music at most. Flags fly at half-mast on this day, which you can follow if you have a flagpole.
- Taiwan's 228 memorial museums in Taipei publish reliable background material. Use them to check facts before adding any further detail to the script.
Print and rehearse
“Edit and print these cards” opens the script in the free cue card maker, where you can choose A5, 4 × 6 or 3 × 5 inch cards, print several per sheet with cut lines or export PDF, PowerPoint and Word, and rehearse full screen in practice mode. To write your own programme around it, see how to write an MC script and the run of show template.
Sources
Date and background checked on 5 October 2026 against: President Lai attends ceremony marking 79th anniversary of 228 Incident-News releases-News & activities｜Office of the President Republic of China(Taiwan). Customs vary between organisations and regions; always follow the official programme of your event.
More Taiwan speech templates
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