Tang Te-chang, born in 1907 in Tainan to a Japanese police-officer father and a Taiwanese mother, carried the distinctive background of mixed Japanese-Taiwanese heritage. He served for a time as a policeman before resolving to study law, going to Japan where he passed both the judicial and administrative divisions of the notoriously difficult higher civil-service examination, a mark of exceptional ability. Returning to Taiwan, he practiced as a lawyer in Tainan, known for his integrity, outspokenness, and defense of the vulnerable, one of the few Taiwanese legal professionals in the south at the time. After World War II he actively engaged in local public affairs, concerned with post-war order and the rights of the Taiwanese. When the February 28 Incident broke out in 1947, a settlement committee was formed in the Tainan area and he was chosen as a leading member, mediating and seeking to maintain order. As Nationalist troops launched their armed crackdown, he stepped forward to take responsibility and tried to shield the youths and students who had joined the protests. He was arrested and severely tortured, yet steadfastly refused to hand over the students' names, bearing the consequences alone. In March 1947 he was publicly executed at Tainan's Minsheng Green Park (today's Tang Te-chang Memorial Park), reportedly calm to the end and refusing to kneel. His sacrifice embodied a jurist's resolve to defend justice and human rights, and he has long been mourned locally. Tainan today observes a memorial day in his honor and renamed the execution-site park after him. Tang is remembered as a representative of grassroots professionals who stood up to protect the people during February 28, a deeply symbolic figure in Taiwan's memory of human rights.

• Died protecting students during the February 28 Incident (1947)

• Passed both the judicial and administrative higher civil-service exams in Japan