More than 120 academics and human rights activists said yesterday they would turn themselves in to prosecutors for breaking the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) in a protest against the legislation.
One after another, more than 30 people gave their name and occupation at a press conference in Taipei, telling prosecutors that they had violated the Act and would like to turn themselves in.
They did so in a show of support for National Taiwan University (NTU) sociology professor Lee Ming-tsung (李明璁) and Taiwan Association for Human Rights chairman Lin Chia-fan (林佳範), who have been indicted for contravening the Act in May and last month respectively.
PHOTO: LO PEI-DER, TAIPEI TIMES
Lee was indicted for taking a leading role in a student demonstration outside the Executive Yuan last November that demanded a revision of the Act, while Lin was indicted for organizing a separate demonstration outside the legislature.
“We believe that the right to assemble and parade are fundamental rights protected by the Constitution and that peaceful assembly is not an illegal act,” said NTU law professor Yen Chueh-an (顏厥安), whose name topped the “surrender list.”
“We have all taken to the streets without government permission. Therefore, if Lee and Lin are guilty, we’re equally guilty,” he said.
National Tsing Hua University sociology professor Lii Ding-tzann (李丁讚) said he would also turn himself in, even though he didn’t think he had done anything illegal.
“I want to do so because the Assembly and Parade Act is unconstitutional and I want to debate it with a judge and a prosecutor in court,” he said.
He also accused the judiciary of becoming a tool of the executive branch by “threatening people not to speak out and prosecuting people who do.”
More than 50 lawyers joined the campaign by volunteering to provide legal assistance to those on the list.
Meanwhile, the activists and academics also called on the Cabinet and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to reconsider their version of an amendment to the Act.
Although the Cabinet-proposed revision removes the requirement for organizers to apply for permission before holding a rally, organizers must obtain authorization from the owner of the venue beforehand.
“Since most demonstrations are held in public places, organizers would have to get authorization from the government,” said Liu Ching-yi (劉靜怡), a professor at NTU’s Graduate Institute of National Development.
“So how is that different from applying for a permit?” Liu said.
Liu said she also did not agree with the amendment granting police the power to maintain order and disband demonstrations.
“It makes police both player and referee,” she said.
RECOGNITION: Former Fijian prime minister Mahendra Chaudhry said that Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy serves as a stabilizing force in the Indo-Pacific region Taiwan can lead the unification of the Chinese people, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and former Polish president Lech Walesa said in Taipei yesterday, adding that as the world order is changing, peaceful discussion would find good solutions, and that the use of force and coercion would always fail. Walesa made the remarks during his keynote address at a luncheon of the Yushan Forum in Taipei, titled “Indo-Pacific Partnership Prospects: Taiwan’s Values, Technology and Resilience,” organized by the Taiwan-Asia Exchange Foundation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Walesa said that he had been at the forefront of a big peaceful revolution and “if
North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles. The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said. The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said. Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding
North Korea yesterday fired about 10 ballistic missiles to the sea toward Japan, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, days after Pyongyang warned of “terrible consequences” over ongoing South Korea-US military drills. Pyongyang recently dashed hopes of a diplomatic thaw with Seoul, Washington’s security ally, describing its latest peace efforts as a “clumsy, deceptive farce.” Seoul’s military detected “around 10 ballistic missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea toward the East Sea [Sea of Japan] at around 1:20pm,” JCS said in a statement, referring to South Korea’s name for the body of water. The missiles
‘UNWAVERING FRIENDSHIP’: A representative of a Japanese group that co-organized a memorial, said he hopes Japanese never forget Taiwan’s kindness President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday marked the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, urging continued cooperation between Taiwan and Japan on disaster prevention and humanitarian assistance. Lai wrote on social media that Taiwan and Japan have always helped each other in the aftermath of major disasters. The magnitude 9 earthquake struck northeastern Japan on March 11, 2011, triggering a massive tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, according to data from Japanese authorities. Following the disaster, Taiwan donated more than US$240 million in aid, making it one of the largest contributors of financial assistance to Japan. In addition to cash donations and
RSS