Today's mass protest against China's "Anti-Secession" Law was a focus of attention in the legislature yesterday, with pan-green legislators dressing up to urge the public to attend the march and pan-blue legislators voicing their criticism about the rally.
Pan-green lawmakers also handed out "peace candy," held a mock banquet and shouted slogans in the legislature's assembly hall.
Attention-seeking activities began yesterday morning with the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) inviting reporters to a mock feast of dishes whose names sounded similar to those of China's top leaders, including President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤), Premier Wen Jiabao (溫家寶), former president Jiang Zemin (江澤民) and former premier Zhu Rongji (朱鎔基).
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
As part of the pan-green camp's efforts to encourage a huge turnout today, female pan-green legislators handed out "peace candy."
Meanwhile, their pan-blue colleagues were busy criticizing the event.
"Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) taking to the streets [today] -- that demonstrates that he does not have the ability to handle cross-strait relations," Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Su Chi (蘇起) said.
"All the people are paying for Chen to take to the streets. The supposed 2 million people march, will cost more than NT$1 billion," KMT legislator Yang Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔) said.
At a press conference yesterday afternoon, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus showed off the placards and buttons it has made for the rally.
In addition to miniature flags, march participants will be provided with blow-up batons in green, red, blue, white and orange printed with the slogan "Democracy, Peace and Defend Taiwan."
The colors, the caucus said, were chosen to show that not only "green" Taiwanese, but all the Taiwanese people, are standing up for the rally.
Highlighting organizers' hopes that the rally will draw widespread international attention, the placards were written in English, Japanese, French and Chinese.
DPP Chairman Su Cheng-chang (蘇貞昌) said that during the march, participants would be lead in singing five songs, including We Shall Overcome in English.
Su, however, refused to say which of the 10 march routes President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) would take, due to security concerns.
The rally, Su emphasized, is about the people, not the president.
"However, the president has made a date with the people to meet on Ketagelan Boulevard. Everyone should come in person to hear and see for themselves," said Su, who appeared at the press conference dressed in his "protest battle gear," which included a digital camera, his personal recorder and a digital camera phone so he could record today's events.
With good weather forecast for today, the DPP caucus urged participants to dress suitably and bring plenty of water.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday said it opposes the introduction of migrant workers from India until a mechanism is in place to prevent workers from absconding. Minister of Labor Hung Sun-han (洪申翰) on Thursday told the Legislative Yuan that the first group of migrant workers from India could be introduced as early as this year, as part of a government program. The caucus’ opposition to the policy is based on the assessment that “the risk is too high,” KMT caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) said. Taiwan has a serious and long-standing problem of migrant workers absconding from their contracts, indicating that
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
TRADE-OFF: Beijing seeks to trade a bowl of tempura for a Chinese delicacy, an official said, while another said its promises were attempts to interfere in the polls The government must carefully consider the national security implications of building a bridge connecting Kinmen County and Xiamen, China, the Public Construction Commission (PCC) said yesterday. PCC Commissioner Derek Chen (陳金德), who is also a minister without portfolio, made the remarks in a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee, after Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Hsu Fu-kuei (徐富癸) asked about China’s proposal of new infrastructure projects to further connect Kinmen and Lienchiang (Matsu) counties with Xiamen. China unveiled the bridge plan, along with nine other policies for Taiwan, on Sunday, the last day of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun’s (鄭麗文) visit
RSS