For any democratically elected administration, it is perhaps neither a smart nor a justified move to be the enemy of young people, who are supposed to be the future of the nation, and the media, the eyes and ears of the people. President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration has been able to achieve both.
During the four-day visit by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍), the administration used what appeared to be disproportionate state violence against young people who protested the Chinese official’s visit.
In Taoyuan County, staff at the Novotel Hotel — likely under pressure from the national security authorities — raided the room of a group of young protesters and demanded that they leave, citing security concerns at first, but later changing the reason to “providing care to guests.” In New Taipei City’s Wulai District (烏來) and in Greater Kaohsiung’s Zuoying District (左營), the police appeared to use excessive force when they tried to evict young protesters. Eight students were arrested in New Taipei City.
For the second time in the past four months, the Ma administration decided to remove young protesters at all cost so that their voices would not be heard — even bloodshed was apparently acceptable.
On March 24, during the Sunflower movement, in which tens of thousands of young activists protested against the service trade agreement with China, the administration sent riot police and water cannons to evict a large number of activists at the Executive Yuan compound, leaving more than 100 people injured.
While excessive force should be condemned, eviction of protesters is standard practice. The key point was that Ma’s administration and the KMT willingly risked losing the trust of an entire generation.
The implications could be phenomenal.
There are also an increasing number of cases in which the Ma administration has resorted to violence against the media. Despite the administration always playing it down, describing it as minor friction and lack of communication from the police, its infringement on the freedom of the press has risen to an alarming level.
During Mainland Affairs Council Minister Wang Yu-chi’s (王郁琦) visit to Nanjing, China, in February this year, the council did not react to Beijing’s denial of entry to a pair of Taiwanese reporters — from Taiwan’s Apple Daily and Radio Free Asia — until the news made headlines.
Before and during the so-called “March 24 Executive Yuan incident” the police dispersed reporters before evicting protesters and also physically assaulted several reporters. In Wulai District on Thursday, the police threatened to arrest a reporter who was covering protesters’ attempt to block Zhang’s motorcade, despite the reporter showing his credentials — issued by the Mainland Affairs Council — and identifying himself.
“So what is the big deal with the credentials?” a police officer said.
On Friday, a Liberty Times (sister paper of the Taipei Times) reporter was allegedly assaulted by a Railway Police Bureau officer while covering Zhang’s arrival at Zuoying High Speed Rail Station.
Throughout the entire Zhang trip, the media have reported that access to most activities was limited and that the Ma administration did not respect the right to report. It would be very difficult for the Ma administration to interpret these events as a sequence of isolated cases. It would also be difficult for the government to say that it did not succumb to Chinese pressure when dealing with these episodes, because all of the incidents were related to China.
So why is the government willing to disconnect itself from the future leaders of Taiwanese society and to blatantly take away the freedom of the press?
Regardless of the answers, the Ma administration is advised to tone down its infringement of civil rights and press freedom because otherwise, Taiwanese will claim their rights — by any means.
The cancelation this week of President William Lai’s (賴清德) state visit to Eswatini, after the Seychelles, Madagascar and Mauritius revoked overflight permits under Chinese pressure, is one more measure of Taiwan’s shrinking executive diplomatic space. Another channel that deserves attention keeps growing while the first contracts. For several years now, Taipei has been one of Europe’s busiest legislative destinations. Where presidents and foreign ministers cannot land, parliamentarians do — and they do it in rising numbers. The Italian parliament opened the year with its largest bipartisan delegation to Taiwan to date: six Italian deputies and one senator, drawn from six
Recently, Taipei’s streets have been plagued by the bizarre sight of rats running rampant and the city government’s countermeasures have devolved into an anti-intellectual farce. The Taipei Parks and Street Lights Office has attempted to eradicate rats by filling their burrows with polyurethane foam, seeming to believe that rats could not simply dig another path out. Meanwhile, as the nation’s capital slowly deteriorates into a rat hive, the Taipei Department of Environmental Protection has proudly pointed to the increase in the number of poisoned rats reported in February and March as a sign of success. When confronted with public concerns over young
Taiwan and India are important partners, yet this reality is increasingly being overshadowed in current debates. At a time when Taiwan-India relations are at a crossroads, with clear potential for deeper engagement and cooperation, the labor agreement signed in February 2024 has become a source of friction. The proposal to bring in 1,000 migrant workers from India is already facing significant resistance, with a petition calling for its “indefinite suspension” garnering more than 40,000 signatures. What should have been a straightforward and practical step forward has instead become controversial. The agreement had the potential to serve as a milestone in
China has long given assurances that it would not interfere in free access to the global commons. As one Ministry of Defense spokesperson put it in 2024, “the Chinese side always respects the freedom of navigation and overflight entitled to countries under international law.” Although these reassurances have always been disingenuous, China’s recent actions display a blatant disregard for these principles. Countries that care about civilian air safety should take note. In April, President Lai Ching-te (賴清德) canceled a planned trip to Eswatini for the 40th anniversary of King Mswati III’s coronation and the 58th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic
RSS