Thousands of protesters yesterday marched from the Executive Yuan to the Presidential Office Building in Taipei to back demands that the government terminate a controversial extension of Asia Cement Corp’s (亞泥) mining rights in Hualien County’s Sincheng Township (新城).
Members of protest organizer Citizen of the Earth, Taiwan (CET) and others gathered in front of the Control Yuan shouting: “Abolish Asia Cement’s mining rights! Reform the mining sector!”
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lin Shu-fen (林淑芬) said Asia Cement did not obtain the consent of Aboriginal landowners before applying for the extension of its mining rights, which it should have done to conform to Article 21 of the Indigenous Peoples Basic Act (原住民基本法).
Photo courtesy of Citizens of the Earth, Taiwan
The Ministry of Economic Affairs said on Monday last week that its approval of the extension was not illegal, with Executive Yuan spokesperson Hsu Kuo-yung (徐國勇) saying the administration supports the ministry’s decision.
“Is the Indigenous Peoples Basic Act not a legal regulation?” Lin said. “Should the Executive Yuan not do its job according to the law?”
The CET led protesters to the Executive Yuan, which was guarded by dozens of police officers with shields in front of the main gate of the compound.
Photo: CNA
“If Aborigines can be deprived of their land, are the properties of other people not also likely to be expropriated by the authorities at some point?” CET researcher Pan Cheng-cheng (潘正正) said.
Performing on a stage mounted on a truck that drove alongside the marchers, musician Huang Wei-jie (黃瑋傑) told the crowd: “Do not forget what kind of power and responsibility we have in our hands.”
At one point during the march the protesters formed the outline of Taiwan proper.
Photo: CNA
By 6pm there were about 7,000 protesters on Ketagalan Boulevard facing the Presidential Office Building, the Wild at Heart Legal Defense Association posted on Facebook.
From her wheelchair, Tien Chun-chou (田春綢), a 74-year-old Truku Aborigine, said that she has fought for 20 years to reclaim her family’s land from Asia Cement.
Political commentator Yao Li-ming (姚立明) said he had followed the mining extension issue since March.
“You can see that most protesters are, unlike me, young people,” he said. “They can see very clearly how the bureaucracy has been covering up for corporations.”
Another protester surnamed Juan (阮), who works as a consultant for land developers, said he was surprised to learn that the company’s extension had been granted in just three months.
“We always face a lot of difficulties when applying for land development permits,” he said.
DPP Legislator Chen Man-li (陳曼麗), who joined the march, said the government should request that all mining firms stop their mining activity until problems with the Mining Act are resolved.
However, the current extraordinary session of the legislature is unlikely to review proposed amendments to the act, as it has many other bills to review, Chen said.
Asia Cement’s mining activities in Sincheng came under renewed criticism after aerial footage from documentary filmmaker Chi Po-lin (齊柏林) — who was killed on June 10 in a helicopter crash while filming — appeared to show that it has expanded its mining operations.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday presented a posthumous commendation for Chi Po-lin to his father, Chi Wei-hsin (齊維新), at a retrospective of the filmmaker and photographer’s work at Songshan Cultural and Creative Park in Taipei.
Losing Chi was like losing “a pair of divine eyes,” she said, adding that the government would reform the mining sector.
Asia Cement Corp yesterday expressed its respect for the opinions of every individual and group.
In a four-point statement on its Web site, it said its current mining operation in Hualien County is not within the boundaries of Taroko National Park, adding that it has been abiding by the law and welcomes examination by all sides.
It will follow the government’s policies in promoting the economy and would make contributions toward sustainable development in Taiwan, it said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS