Law must be upheld
The last couple of weeks have seen incredible events. First of all an election evening with thousands of people on the streets ending peacefully. One party asking its supporters to return home and keep a low profile and the other asking them to continue to demonstrate. This resulting in the mass demonstration on March 27. Then the dramatic but peaceful breaking-up of the demonstration.
I am convinced that Taiwan has made history by showing such tolerance and that it has been an example to the world by dispersing this demonstration peacefully.
Worrisome, however, is the recent tendency for taking action outside a legally established framework. The leaders and supporters have a great responsibility in this respect. The foreign community and foreign investors are hoping that Taiwan continues to be a country ruled by law and that disputes are settled within the established legal framework. Furthermore, that there is no threat of violence or riots.
Taiwan has become a modern society in which investors have confidence. I hope that all parties concerned understand that. However, this confidence will only remain if the law is upheld.
Helga Nieker
Taipei
Not how Gandhi did it
I cannot believe that these student protesters have the audacity to claim that they are neutral. It is clear that some or all of these students have "blue" in their blood and are trying to advance the "blue" cause.
Second, they demand to meet the president to discuss their views and opinions. So let me get this straight -- if I want to meet the president all I need to do is to stop eating for a few days?
I do not think threatening to harm oneself is the correct way to try to get something achieved and I hope that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) will not give these "blue" students the time of day.
It seems awfully odd to me that the students do this on 12-hour shifts. So basically after 12 hours they can go to the local KFC outlet and stuff their faces until they are full and then return to "starve" for 12 more hours. Funny, but I don't recall that was the way Mahatma Gandhi did it when he was trying to get his message across.
Christopher Casas
Taipei
Ignore talk shows and polls
Before the election, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (
The TV talk shows here were hilarious. They hired some people from both sides (pan-blue or pan-green) to argue loudly on TV and then invite the audience to call in to talk about issues that were so superficial. At first, most people thought they were so democratic and rushed to call in to express themselves for 30 seconds. Then, people started to realize that these programs were biased, and some just watched to have a laugh.
The public knew that no matter what they thought, the TV talk shows or the survey results were not going to do their opinions justice. So they created a mirage to satisfy the opposition. When the results came out, they were laughing and saying `I told you so.'
What a fascinating way to demonstrate the power of democracy!
May Huang
Taipei
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