Ma's mishandling of illegal protest draws criticism

As protests against KMT chairman Lee Teng-hui (李登輝) outside the party's central headquarters in Taipei continue into the fifth day, complaints continue to stream in from a nearby hospital and several schools near the demonstration.

Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) -- who appeared at the scene and sang patriotic songs with crowds on the first day of the demonstration -- suffered severe criticism over his handling of the gathering which, according to the law, should not have been allowed to continue.

Late on March 18, a group of voters, accompanied by several elected representatives who had supported independent candidate James Soong (宋楚瑜), left Soong's campaign headquarters for the KMT central headquarters, where they began a lengthy, sometimes violent demonstration, demanding that Lee appear before them and resign from his position of KMT chairman.

For all the claims of Machivellian political wrangling occurring behind the scenes, the gathering itself is illegal under the terms of the Parade and Assembly Law (集遊法).

The demonstration, which was originally concentrated around the area of the KMT headquarters on the first three days, but later moved to the front of National Taiwan University Hospital on Chungshan South Road, has paralyzed nearby traffic and caused suspension of classes at seven schools in the neighborhood.

Bothered by the loud noise and chaos caused by the crowds, staff at the hospital attempted negotiations with the demonstrators yesterday, telling them that their actions had seriously disturbed patients and their families at the hospital.

However, the crowds still refused to end the demonstration, saying they would not concede until Lee's resignation.

In the wake of neighborhood unrest caused by the demonstration in the last few days, many Taipei city councilors and social groups blamed Ma for mishandling the illegal gathering, saying the mayor confused his role as head of the city and a KMT member when he appeared before the demonstrators on Sunday at midnight.

"However sympathetic he might be toward the demonstrators, he is the mayor and it's his job to maintain order in the city," said Tuan Yi-kuang (段宜康), a DPP Taipei City Councilor.

"Instead of telling the crowds of consequences they might face because of their illegal gathering, Ma courted the demonstrators that night and followed every request they made. In fact, his appearance has actually served no purpose other than to fan the flames of discontent and encourage the protesters to continue."

"I think the mayor will shortly have to offer a very clear report on this event to the city council," Tuan said.

In the face of growing criticism, officials at the city government claimed the mayor opted not to take strong action against the demonstrators for fear of prompting an even more radical reaction from them.

"Ma was there that night singing with the demonstrators to try to calm them down. And we chose the soft approach because we really didn't want to see further bloodshed and confrontation," said King Pu-tsung (金溥聰), Director of Taipei City Government's Department of Information.

However, Yen Chueh-an (顏厥安), associate professor of law at National Taiwan University, and a member of the liberal group Chen She (澄社), said Ma's appearance at the demonstration that night was very inappropriate because it has not only affected follow-up action by the police but in a way enhanced the "legitimacy" of the supposedly-illegal activity.