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Tsai calls for police calm during protest

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday called on police not to encourage conflict between protesters and law enforcement officers by overreacting during the protest that will be held today and during the overnight sit-in in front of the Presidential Office.

Tsai made the remarks at a press conference at DPP headquarters on the eve of today’s demonstration against the government’s China-leaning policies, which Tsai has described as “rash” and “compromising Taiwan’s sovereignty.”

By staging the demonstration ahead of the first anniversary of the inauguration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), the DPP said it wants to tell the world that Taiwan’s future is not up to Ma or the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).

Taiwan’s gift of democracy has been damaged by the Ma administration in the past year, Tsai said yesterday.

Public opinion has been ignoerd, the legislature belittled, the media manipulated and the country transformed from a one-party state to a one-man state, she said, calling on the public to join the rally to safeguard Taiwan’s democracy and sovereignty.

“We hope President Ma will stop at the edge of the precipice,” she said, adding that she hoped the rally and sit-in would leave the government with a “shocked impression.”

The rally will be followed by an overnight sit-in on Ketagalan Boulevard to protest the government’s proposed amendments to the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), which the DPP says would expand the police’s ability to restrict people’s right of assembly, and was a sign that the government was returning to the authoritarian period.

The National Police Agency (NPA) said it would mobilize 4,000 officers in Taipei today to help maintain law and order.

A demonstration organized by pro-independence groups will also be held in Kaohsiung City this afternoon to protest against the government’s policies. The NPA said it would mobilize 1,900 officers there.

The Taipei Prosecutors Office said a special task force was assembled on Friday to ensure peaceful protests. The 14 prosecutors on the team will be stationed at the office from 2pm, when the rally is scheduled to be launched, a spokesman for the prosecutors’ office said.

Tsai said that the role of police officers was to help people express their opinions freely and ensure that their right to assemble was respected.

“The mindset within law enforcement should be to offer assistance — and not stand in opposition — to the public,” Tsai said.

“I don’t want to see conflict between police and demonstrators as a result of overreaction by law-enforcement officers,” she said.

Tsai said protesters must follow the instructions given by the party’s coordination team and insist on love and nonviolence. Any provocative action by protesters or overzealous reaction by police must be met with calm and composure.

Protesters must keep an eye out for individuals along the route of the protest who may carry dangerous objects or act in a provocative manner, Tsai said. Such problems should be reported to the team maintaining order so they can be addressed and removed, she said.

DPP spokesman Cheng Wen-tsang (鄭文燦) said yesterday that some party members had recently received anonymous text messages asking them to gather in groups of between five and seven people, surround police during the rally and ask officers to hand over their side arms to prevent the demonstration from being disrupted.

Saying that the text messages were an attempt to create conflict during the rally, Cheng called on participants not to believe the rumors and rather follow the instructions from the party’s coordination center.

Cheng said someone had recently distributed an open letter penned by Tsai titled “I don’t want my country to come to this” as an e-mail attachment containing a virus. Tsai’s blog has also received comments suggesting that today’s demonstration lacked support or calling on other visitors to the Web page to stop leaving messages.

In related news, former first lady Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) moved to Kaohsiung yesterday to live with her son, Chen Chih-chung (陳致中).

Wu took the High Speed Rail to Kaohsiung yesterday morning and was stuck at Zuoying Station for more than 30 minutes as supporters clashed with the media.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA AND MO YAN-CHIH

Also See: Ma to head for Hsinchu as demonstration begins
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