Monopoly Bureau
Anti-KMT riots flared following the 228 Incident, which was sparked by the beating death of a widow on February 27, 1947. Agents from the Taiwan Monopoly Bureau beat a widow to death during her arrest for selling smuggled cigarettes in violation of the state monopoly of tobacco. Enraged onlookers forced the agents to flee; as they escaped, they shot indiscriminately into the crowd, killing one.  A peaceful protest march occurred on February 28, demanding justice for the widow's killers; after marching to the headquarters of the Monopoly Bureau, they moved on to the Governor-General's office, where four were shot and killed without warning by machine guns. The resulting riots forced the Governor-General to barricade government offices in Taipei, declaring martial law on February 28. Riots spread to the rest of Taiwan over the next few days; in Taipei, civic leaders formed the "Committee to Settle the February 28th Incident" to meet with the Governor-General, urgently requesting that martial law be lifted to reduce the consequences of protests. Chen agreed to lift martial law starting on March 2.