Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) yesterday said that the barricades outside government buildings in Taipei would not be removed until “the situation has settled down” and dismissed concerns that imposing “pre-emptive detention” would turn Taiwan into a police state.
The number of police officers stationed outside the Legislative Yuan has surged since the most recent legislative meeting, when antinuclear protesters tried to stop lawmakers from leaving the compound by surrounding and jumping on their cars.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) asked Jiang at a question-and-answer session at the legislature yesterday when the barricades would be removed, but did not receive a straight answer.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
Saying that he had been asked the same question before, Jiang said: “As you can see Tsay Ting-kuei (蔡丁貴) took action last week, as I said he would.”
Tsay is the convener of the Alliance of Referendum for Taiwan, which organized the antinuclear protest and besieged the Legislative Yuan.
Jiang also invited opposition lawmakers who had also been obstructed by the protesters while attempting to leave the complex to “call on the public to stop instigating social unrest.”
Jiang was also asked to comment on a public request for the establishment of a labor union for police officers after an officer from Miaoli County died of a stroke on Thursday. The officer had been unconscious for several weeks, allegedly as a result of overexertion from being dispatched to Taipei to deal with the Sunflower movement protests against the cross-strait service trade agreement.
“Our society still has doubts about allowing public servants who hold power, such as teachers, soldiers and police, to form unions,” Jiang said.
DPP Legislator Chiu Chih-wei (邱志偉) criticized a proposal made by Deputy Minister of the Interior Jonathan Chen (陳純敬) on using pre-emptive detention against protesters, saying it would sow fear in society.
Jiang said that pre-emptive detention “will not target students or protesters, but a small number of people who have repeatedly led the crowd to attack the Legislative Yuan and impeded lawmakers’ access to government buildings.”
BUSY DAY: The same day the USS ‘Barry’ passed through the Strait, Taiwan was ending its Han Kuang military exercises, while China said it conducted an exercise near Taiwan A US Navy ship on Friday sailed through the Taiwan Strait, marking the ninth time a US military vessel has transited the Strait since US President Joe Biden took office in January. The USS Barry, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, conducted a “routine” transit through the Strait, the US Navy said in a statement, adding that the journey through international waters was conducted “in accordance with international law.” “The ship’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the US’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the US Navy said. “The United States military flies, sails and operates anywhere international law allows.” The Ministry
FRUIT SPAT: The COA said China had not given evidence for halting wax and custard apple imports, adding that it would spend NT$1bn on promoting sales of the fruit Taipei threatened to take China to the WTO yesterday after Beijing said it would suspend wax apple and custard apple imports from Taiwan due to pest concerns. China’s customs administration earlier yesterday said it had repeatedly found pests called Planococcus minor, a type of mealybug, on wax and custard apples from Taiwan. It asked its Guangdong branch and all affiliated offices to stop clearing the products from today. China had acted unilaterally, without providing scientific evidence, Council of Agriculture (COA) Minister Chen Chi-chung (陳吉仲) told a news conference, criticizing the announcement’s timing, as it came during the Mid-Autumn Festival, celebrated in Taiwan
ON ALERT: A woman who tested positive for COVID-19 while abroad last year tested negative twice in Taiwan before showing a positive result on Sunday, the center said The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported two locally transmitted COVID-19 infections, four imported cases and no deaths. The CECC meanwhile warned nearly 500 people to monitor their health after a woman tested postive. The center also reported that a previous local case — a female worker at Taoyuan International Airport Services (桃園航勤), who had the Delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 — likely contracted the disease from the same source as a previous imported case from Turkey. Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said that the two local cases were reported in Taipei, and are a
CLOSED DOORS? The new US rules, which are to be implemented in November, have sparked concern in Taiwan, given its low fully vaccinated coverage rate The US plans to allow entry to most foreign air travelers as long as they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19 — while adding a testing requirement for unvaccinated Americans and barring entry for foreigners who have not received shots. The measures announced on Monday by the White House mark the most sweeping change to US travel policies in months, and widen the gap in rules between vaccinated people — who would see restrictions relaxed — and unvaccinated people. The new rules would replace existing bans on foreigners’ travel to the US from certain regions, including Europe. While the move would open the
RSS