Activist groups and civic organizations plan to take to the streets for a major anti-government protest in Taipei today, which will culminate in the evening with the occupation of the roadway plaza in front of the Presidential Office.
Organizers said they expect up to tens of thousands of participants to show up to denounce what they described as the political wrangling and abuse of power by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
Protesters will assemble on Ketagalan Boulevard starting at 4pm.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
The groups are calling on all citizens “to join the rally and express your anger at Ma, to save Taiwan” for the Sept. 29 anti-Ma protest. There will be a counterpart anti-government demonstration in Greater Kaohsiung today.
Groups representing youths, students, women, labor and civil society organizations will take part in the protest.
Yang Tsu-kuang (楊子廣), son of the debt-ridden taxi driver Liu Chin-yi (劉進義), who committed suicide two weeks ago, reportedly out of frustration at Ma’s mishandling of the national economy, urged people to join today’s protest.
“All citizens should stand up to express their anger at those in power. It is these men, who have the power to change the current situation, who have ignored what is happening to our society, and this led to my father’s suicide. Although I cannot change society, I will get back at those who hold political power,” Yang said.
The date was chosen because the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) had been scheduled to hold its 19th National Congress at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei that day. The KMT later postponed the congress and changed the venue, likely to Chungshan Hall on Yangmingshan on Oct. 26, saying it was doing so out of concern for public safety.
However, activists said the anti-government protest would still go ahead today.
The activities will begin in the morning with the “Alliance for Citizen Actions to Oust Ma” groups to gather near the official presidential residence, on Chongching S Road Sec. 2.
In the afternoon, starting at 1 pm at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, the National Alliance for Workers of Closed Factories (全國關廠工人連線) is organizing a “Shoe-In” action, in which shoes and slippers will be thrown into a pile.
A foot race will be held at 3pm to mock Ma “running scared and hiding from the people.”
“Besides workers, activists against urban renewal projects and land expropriations, as well as some of the victims of such projects will take part,” alliance spokeswoman Chen Hsiu-lien (陳秀蓮) said.
The various groups will assemble at Ketagalan Boulevard at 4pm for the main evening rally, which is to be convened by Ge Shu-ren (葛樹人) and other media personalities.
The rally to call on Ma to step down will have a series of activities and invite each demonstrator to speak give their views for one minute throughout the course of the evening.
“We need a positive force to uplift our society. I call on those who are fed up with the political system and dissatisfied with our political leaders to join us and let them know your anger,” Ge said.
Authorities said police would provide traffic control and security measures at areas around the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall and Ketagalan Boulevard, while requesting the public to be aware of the protest and road closures.
FALSE DOCUMENTS? Actor William Liao said he was ‘voluntarily cooperating’ with police after a suspect was accused of helping to produce false medical certificates Police yesterday questioned at least six entertainers amid allegations of evasion of compulsory military service, with Lee Chuan (李銓), a member of boy band Choc7 (超克7), and actor Daniel Chen (陳大天) among those summoned. The New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office in January launched an investigation into a group that was allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified medical documents. Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) has been accused of being one of the group’s clients. As the investigation expanded, investigators at New Taipei City’s Yonghe Precinct said that other entertainers commissioned the group to obtain false documents. The main suspect, a man surnamed
The government is considering polices to increase rental subsidies for people living in social housing who get married and have children, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. During an interview with the Plain Law Movement (法律白話文) podcast, Cho said that housing prices cannot be brought down overnight without affecting banks and mortgages. Therefore, the government is focusing on providing more aid for young people by taking 3 to 5 percent of urban renewal projects and zone expropriations and using that land for social housing, he said. Single people living in social housing who get married and become parents could obtain 50 percent more
DEMOGRAPHICS: Robotics is the most promising answer to looming labor woes, the long-term care system and national contingency response, an official said Taiwan is to launch a five-year plan to boost the robotics industry in a bid to address labor shortages stemming from a declining and aging population, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The government approved the initiative, dubbed the Smart Robotics Industry Promotion Plan, via executive order, senior officials told a post-Cabinet meeting news conference in Taipei. Taiwan’s population decline would strain the economy and the nation’s ability to care for vulnerable and elderly people, said Peter Hong (洪樂文), who heads the National Science and Technology Council’s (NSTC) Department of Engineering and Technologies. Projections show that the proportion of Taiwanese 65 or older would
Democracies must remain united in the face of a shifting geopolitical landscape, former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) told the Copenhagen Democracy Summit on Tuesday, while emphasizing the importance of Taiwan’s security to the world. “Taiwan’s security is essential to regional stability and to defending democratic values amid mounting authoritarianism,” Tsai said at the annual forum in the Danish capital. Noting a “new geopolitical landscape” in which global trade and security face “uncertainty and unpredictability,” Tsai said that democracies must remain united and be more committed to building up resilience together in the face of challenges. Resilience “allows us to absorb shocks, adapt under
RSS