The National Socialism Association (NSA) is a far-right political organization in Taiwan, founded in August 2005 by participants of the online forum Taiwan Nazi. It received international attention in March 2007, following reports of its inaugural in-person meeting that month. Despite its use of Nazi iconography and praise of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, the NSA claims that it is not a neo-Nazi organization. The group's activities and practices have been condemned by a number of prominent Jewish organizations and individuals. Several domestic and international political commentators have also criticized the NSA's leadership for their lack of knowledge regarding the Holocaust and Nazism in general. History NSA chair Joshua Yue Shu-ya stated that the organization was founded some time in August 2005 by participants of the online forum Taiwan Nazi. The forum was later transformed into the NSA's website. The NSA was registered as a public organization under Taiwanese law in September 2006. Its registerers were two political science graduates: Hsu Na-chi, at the time a 22-year-old who had recently completed her bachelor's at Soochow University; and Lahn Chao Wei, a 24-year-old postgraduate who was pursuing his master's degree in political science at National Chengchi University. The registration was met with backlash both domestically and abroad, with critics calling for the registration's reversal. The Taiwanese government, however, responded that the establishment and existence of the NSA were protected by the country's constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech and organization. In an interview with Apple Daily on 10 March 2007, Hsu claimed that she started researching Nazism during her undergraduate years. She argued that the constant political struggle between the Kuomintang and the Democratic Progressive Party had hampered Taiwan's ability to nation-build, and so the establishment of a fascist state was needed to end the conflict and bring stability. Chao meanwhile wrote a public statement on the NSA's website on 13 March 2007, saying that he was not a racist or a neo-Nazi, but he nonetheless "identifies with Nazi ideology". The Taipei Times reported that Chao regularly posted photos of himself in Nazi cosplay on the NSA's website while it was still online. Alongside Chao's statement was an announcement by Hsu, who indicated her intention to register the NSA as a non-governmental organization. The group was unable to do so as it did not have enough adult members. In this regard, Chao commented, "We have too many high school and middle school