More than 500 locals and expatriates took to the streets of downtown Taipei yesterday morning to protest against a US-led war on Iraq, echoing other peace rallies around the globe this weekend.
Holding placards reading "War is not the answer," and "Bombing solves nothing," demonstrators gathered next to the Taipei office of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT).
Speaking at the rally, blind aboriginal poet Monaneng (
PHOTO: CHIANG YING-YING, TAIPEI TIMES
"At the moment, I feel ashamed of being Taiwanese because our government is supporting an act of aggression," the poet from the Paiwan tribe said.
"A war can kill many people and cripple others. It's detestable for Taiwan to support others' acts of aggression today, especially when Taiwan was once invaded by Japan," he said.
Hundreds of protesters in the demonstration, organized by more than 30 labor, civic and human-rights groups, shared Monaneng's sentiments.
"I am not only against the war, but also the unilateralism of the foreign policy of the US. And the war is the result of that," said 25-year-old Belgian Jo Swinnen.
As Swinnen's friends back at home were to join the anti-war protest in Brussels, his friend Abram Sitzer from California joined him in the demonstration next to the AIT.
Sitzer said the US should not go to war against Iraq without the endorsement of the international community through the mechanism of the UN, saying unilateralism would backfire in the long run.
"I just want to make sure if there is a decision to go to war, it should be a global decision and it should go through the UN," Sitzer said.
"I think it [a US go-it-alone war] is going to get eaten from the inside. It's going to lose a lot of domestic support ... if there isn't international cooperation for a war," he added.
Jordanian Aga Ziad, 39, said a US-led war in Iraq, regardless of the precision of the US "smart bombs," can still kill Iraqi civilians and worsen the already turbulent situation in the Middle East.
"We'd like to have peace in the world," Ziad said.
The two-hour rally, under the gaze of local police, was peppered with speeches, anti-war chants and songs reminiscent of the anti-Vietnam-war protests in the 1970s.
Local celebrities and activists at the protest included Hsia Chu-joe (
The key organizers of the rally included the Taiwan Association for Human Rights, the Labor Rights Association, the Awakening Foundation and the Taiwan Anti-Imperialist Students Organization.
Although some participants said they were disappointed with the turnout for the protest compared to demonstrations elsewhere in the world, others said at least an anti-war voice was being heard in Taiwan.
"As anti-war protests gather momentum around the globe, Taiwan should not be left behind. We need to let our voice be heard," NTU professor Lee Ben-nan (
The Taiwan Association for Human Rights calls for a peaceful end to the Iraq crisis.
SHIPS, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES: The ministry has announced changes to varied transportation industries taking effect soon, with a number of effects for passengers Beginning next month, the post office is canceling signature upon delivery and written inquiry services for international registered small packets in accordance with the new policy of the Universal Postal Union, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The new policy does not apply to packets that are to be delivered to China, the ministry said. Senders of international registered small packets would receive a NT$10 rebate on postage if the packets are sent from Jan. 1 to March 31, it added. The ministry said that three other policies are also scheduled to take effect next month. International cruise ship operators
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
Temperatures are forecast to drop steadily as a continental cold air mass moves across Taiwan, with some areas also likely to see heavy rainfall, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. From today through early tomorrow, a cold air mass would keep temperatures low across central and northern Taiwan, and the eastern half of Taiwan proper, with isolated brief showers forecast along Keelung’s north coast, Taipei and New Taipei City’s mountainous areas and eastern Taiwan, it said. Lows of 11°C to 15°C are forecast in central and northern Taiwan, Yilan County, and the outlying Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties, and 14°C to 17°C
STEERING FAILURE: The first boat of its class is experiencing teething issues as it readies for acceptance by the navy, according to a recent story about rudder failure The Hai Kun (海鯤), the nation’s first locally built submarine, allegedly suffered a total failure of stern hydraulic systems during the second round of sea acceptance trials on June 26, and sailors were forced to manually operate the X-rudder to turn the submarine and return to port, news Web site Mirror Daily reported yesterday. The report said that tugboats following the Hai Kun assisted the submarine in avoiding collisions with other ships due to the X-rudder malfunctioning. At the time of the report, the submarine had completed its trials and was scheduled to begin diving and surfacing tests in shallow areas. The X-rudder,
RSS