Taiwan marks 40 years since the Democratic Progressive Party was founded in secret under martial law, a reminder of how narrow the path to the island's democracy was.

• On the eve of the founding, Yu Shyi-kun brought his wife and two children to a Taipei guest house so that if police came the next day, he could at least say goodbye.
• Forming a party was illegal in 1986, and everyone involved expected arrest; Frank Hsieh left a will at his law office before the meeting.
• The plan was deliberate: announce the new party before the election, so that if members were jailed their families could run in their place and win, as jailed dissidents' wives already had.
• The Grand Hotel was chosen precisely because it was a symbol of the ruling party — hiding in the brightest spot — and the founding was pushed through as a surprise motion, with some in the room refusing to sign their names out of fear.
• The riskiest stretch came after: ten tense days until Chiang Ching-kuo publicly called an opposition party a normal part of politics, signalling no mass arrests.

Outlook: The anniversary is being used to argue that democracy was seized rather than granted, and that Taiwan's institutions — not any single party — are what hold.