Over 2,000 railway workers held a demonstration at Taipei Railway Station yesterday to protest against the Taiwan Railway Administration's closure of two platforms and four tracks in the station for the construction of the nation's north-south high-speed railway.
Taipei Railway Station has four platforms and nine tracks.
Six trains between Taipei and Keelung were cancelled yesterday as a result of the closures.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
The TRA will lease the two platforms and four tracks to Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) in April next year, after which the administration plans to cut another 104 trains.
At the demonstration, the Taiwan Railway Labor Union (TRLU), worried about how the high-speed railway project will affect the operation of the current railway system and accused the administration of betraying its own workers.
Angry protesters walked down onto the tracks to pick up garbage as a gesture of farewell to the tracks and the platforms.
While railway workers from around the nation gathered at the station to voice support for the TRLU, Chang Wen-cheng (張文正), chairman of TRLU, made three appeals to the railway administration.
"First, in order not to affect the rights of travelers, no trains should be cancelled as a result of the high-speed railway project," said Chang.
"Secondly, TRA should not hand over any platforms or tracks at Taipei Railway Station to the private company THSRC.
"Thirdly, TRA has to abide by the legislative resolution about how TRA and THSRC share platforms and tracks," said Chang.
On March 26 last year, the legislature passed a resolution to protect the state-owned railway system from being affected by the private high-speed railway project.
The main point of the resolution was that THSRC cannot use TRA's platforms and tracks without the agreement of Chang's union.
According to Chang, on Feb. 19, union members met with the administration's Director-General Huang Teh-chih (黃德治) to ask him to comply with the resolution and not to lease any platforms or tracks to THSRC.
"However, Huang's attitude was tough and he rejected our request," Chang said.
Chang said the union would launch a national railway workers' strike if the administration refused to listen to appeals. Demonstrators even called on Huang to resign.
Railway workers also fear job losses because the government is planning to corporatize the deficit-burdened TRA next year, and plans to privatize it in June 2007.
Huang turned up at the end of the demonstration and told protesters he would comply with the unions three demands. He also offered his resignation.
"Our railway system is facing great difficulties. If my resignation can solve all the problems, I will resign now," Huang said.
Hsu Ta-wen (徐達文), the administration's deputy director-general said the completion of the high-speed railway will severely affect TRA's long-haul services. As a result, the administration has been planning to transform the current railway system into a system of local railway networks that operate mainly short-haul trips.
Hsu also promised no job cuts during TRA's privatization.
Also to appease the protesting railway workers, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) instructed a senior official of the Council of Labor Affairs to express to Chang the government's willingness to meet the union's demands..
The union and the railway administration both agreed yesterday to return to the negotiation table to discuss whether the platforms and tracks should be reopened.
According to Huang, THSRC is willing to pay a large sum to rent Taipei Railway Station's platforms and tracks.
NO HUMAN ERROR: After the incident, the Coast Guard Administration said it would obtain uncrewed aerial vehicles and vessels to boost its detection capacity Authorities would improve border control to prevent unlawful entry into Taiwan’s waters and safeguard national security, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday after a Chinese man reached the nation’s coast on an inflatable boat, saying he “defected to freedom.” The man was found on a rubber boat when he was about to set foot on Taiwan at the estuary of Houkeng River (後坑溪) near Taiping Borough (太平) in New Taipei City’s Linkou District (林口), authorities said. The Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) northern branch said it received a report at 6:30am yesterday morning from the New Taipei City Fire Department about a
IN BEIJING’S FAVOR: A China Coast Guard spokesperson said that the Chinese maritime police would continue to carry out law enforcement activities in waters it claims The Philippines withdrew its coast guard vessel from a South China Sea shoal that has recently been at the center of tensions with Beijing. BRP Teresa Magbanua “was compelled to return to port” from Sabina Shoal (Xianbin Shoal, 仙濱暗沙) due to bad weather, depleted supplies and the need to evacuate personnel requiring medical care, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) spokesman Jay Tarriela said yesterday in a post on X. The Philippine vessel “will be in tiptop shape to resume her mission” after it has been resupplied and repaired, Philippine Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin, who heads the nation’s maritime council, said
REGIONAL STABILITY: Taipei thanked the Biden administration for authorizing its 16th sale of military goods and services to uphold Taiwan’s defense and safety The US Department of State has approved the sale of US$228 million of military goods and services to Taiwan, the US Department of Defense said on Monday. The state department “made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale” to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US for “return, repair and reshipment of spare parts and related equipment,” the defense department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a news release. Taiwan had requested the purchase of items and services which include the “return, repair and reshipment of classified and unclassified spare parts for aircraft and related equipment; US Government
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from