Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday the party would hold its 24-hour sit-in protest against the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) and a draft amendment to the act without applying to the Taipei City Government for permission.
“We oppose this ridiculous Assembly and Parade Act and oppose the government’s proposed amendment to the Assembly and Parade Act,” Tsai told reporters yesterday.
The protest is scheduled to start on Sunday in front of the Presidential Office after the party’s rally against the government’s pro-China policies.
A draft amendment of the act proposed by the Cabinet would allow police to restrict the public’s right to protest, Tsai said.
She also said the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) had been playing tricks, first to block the sit-in, then to make it seem that Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) had helped the DPP.
The KMT arranged for “civic groups” to apply for rally permits on Ketagalan Boulevard on Monday to prevent the DPP’s 24-hour sit-in, she said. Later, Hau claimed he had negotiated with the groups on behalf of the DPP and convinced them to yield to the sit-in, she said.
Tsai said Hau’s behavior was “ridiculous and hypocritical,” and the DPP did not appreciate his supposed “help.”
The DPP has a permit for its Sunday-night rally on Ketagalan Boulevard, but could not secure a permit for the sit-in as the space had been booked for Monday.
Hau then called on the DPP to negotiate with the organization over use of the space. He was referring to the Taipei City branch of the KMT.
Yesterday he said the KMT had agreed to yield to the sit-in after being contacted by the city government over the matter.
Hau yesterday urged the DPP to complete the legal procedures for holding its sit-in and promised the permit would be granted.
“Ketagalan Boulevard is a major traffic artery and many residents have to use the road on Monday ... Applying for a road permit is [meant to] protect the rights of the majority,” Hau said.
Hau said the city government was concerned about the impact of the sit-in on traffic and would have trouble presenting a traffic control plan if the DPP did not apply for a road permit.
After news that the DPP would not apply for the permit, Hau said the sit-in would be illegal and the city government would handle the matter with a “soft approach.”
“I believe the DPP is a responsible party that will take the public’s rights and perspectives into consideration,” he said.
The combined effect of the monsoon, the outer rim of Typhoon Fengshen and a low-pressure system is expected to bring significant rainfall this week to various parts of the nation, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The heaviest rain is expected to occur today and tomorrow, with torrential rain expected in Keelung’s north coast, Yilan and the mountainous regions of Taipei and New Taipei City, the CWA said. Rivers could rise rapidly, and residents should stay away from riverbanks and avoid going to the mountains or engaging in water activities, it said. Scattered showers are expected today in central and
People can preregister to receive their NT$10,000 (US$325) cash distributed from the central government on Nov. 5 after President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday signed the Special Budget for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience, the Executive Yuan told a news conference last night. The special budget, passed by the Legislative Yuan on Friday last week with a cash handout budget of NT$236 billion, was officially submitted to the Executive Yuan and the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon. People can register through the official Web site at https://10000.gov.tw to have the funds deposited into their bank accounts, withdraw the funds at automated teller
COOPERATION: Taiwan is aligning closely with US strategic objectives on various matters, including China’s rare earths restrictions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Taiwan could deal with China’s tightened export controls on rare earth metals by turning to “urban mining,” a researcher said yesterday. Rare earth metals, which are used in semiconductors and other electronic components, could be recovered from industrial or electronic waste to reduce reliance on imports, National Cheng Kung University Department of Resources Engineering professor Lee Cheng-han (李政翰) said. Despite their name, rare earth elements are not actually rare — their abundance in the Earth’s crust is relatively high, but they are dispersed, making extraction and refining energy-intensive and environmentally damaging, he said, adding that many countries have opted to
CONCESSION: A Shin Kong official said that the firm was ‘willing to contribute’ to the nation, as the move would enable Nvidia Crop to build its headquarters in Taiwan Shin Kong Life Insurance Co (新光人壽) yesterday said it would relinquish land-use rights, or known as surface rights, for two plots in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), paving the way for Nvidia Corp to expand its office footprint in Taiwan. The insurer said it made the decision “in the interest of the nation’s greater good” and would not seek compensation from taxpayers for potential future losses, calling the move a gesture to resolve a months-long impasse among the insurer, the Taipei City Government and the US chip giant. “The decision was made on the condition that the Taipei City Government reimburses the related
RSS