The image of the nation’s law enforcement authorities was severely tarnished by the visit to Taiwan in November last year of China’s Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait (ARATS) Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林).
During the visit, the public witnessed police infringe on the rights and freedom of expression of Taiwanese by confiscating flags and other items without legitimate reason, stopping and questioning people who wore T-shirts that read “Taiwan is my country” and ordering a music store located near a hotel where Chen was dining to shut down because it was playing the Song of Taiwan, claiming the music was too loud.
Granted, police were acting under orders, but their abusive and arrogant behavior was a sad departure from the public image of officers as helpful public servants.
Unfortunately, such a negative image was reinforced on Tuesday night when clashes erupted between police, security agents and supporters of the Democratic Progressive Party in Hsinchu County. News footage showed some police and security agents pushing and shoving to force pan-green supporters to give way ahead of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) arrival.
As it is the police’s duty to maintain order, they deserve respect for doing their job. The same applies to the president’s security detail, whose primary task is to keep him out of harm’s way. The question is whether it was necessary for police to act in such an aggressive and abusive manner against people who were simply exercising their right to campaign and did not mean any harm to the president.
Some may also recall how Tainan City Police Bureau Commissioner Chen Fu-hsiang (陳富祥) was transferred and slapped with a demerit in October last year for allegedly failing to protect ARATS Vice Chairman Zhang Mingqing (張銘清), who fell and lost his glasses in a scuffle with independence activists during a visit to Tainan’s Confucius Temple. National Police Agency (NPA) Director-General Wang Cho-chiun (王卓鈞) also asked to be disciplined to take responsibility for the matter.
Contrast this with the police’s response to two recent crimes: A man was robbed of NT$77 million (US$2.38 million) by gunmen in Tainan City in the biggest cash heist in the country in recent history; another man was shot at least 10 times in broad daylight in Tainan County’s Yongkang City (永康市) on Tuesday.
However, as of yesterday, higher police authorities had yet to dedicate themselves to solving the crimes to a level comparable to that for the Zhang incident. This creates the impression that police are more interested in carrying out partisan politics than fighting crime and bringing criminals to justice.
Ma has often stressed the importance of public opinion, lecturing his government and government officials to be mindful of the public’s feelings. The NPA and the National Security Bureau would do well to heed Ma’s advice.
With the local government elections less than two weeks away, political campaigns, activities, public exchanges are expected to intensify. The least we can expect is that the nation’s law enforcement officers remain impartial and do their job rather than currying favor with higher authorities.
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