The Taipei Police Department said yesterday that it would allocate 5,000 officers to help maintain order during a protest planned for tomorrow against President Chen Shui-bian (
The anti-Chen campaign has called for 2 million people to join its "siege" tomorrow by encircling the Presidential Office building from four directions during the Double Ten National Day celebration.
"The Double Ten National Day siege against Chen is illegal because the anti-Chen campaign did not apply to the city police department for a rally permit," Taipei City Police Department Commissioner Wang Cho-chiun (
PHOTO: LO PEI-DER, TAIPEI TIMES
"The rally would violate the Assembly and Parade Law (
He said if the anti-Chen campaign used the underground radio stations to call on the public to join the rally and to give orders during the campaign, as it proposed to do, it might violate the Broadcasting and Television Law (
Wang asked the anti-Chen camp to keep its supporters calm during the protest.
"Police will remove and arrest protesters if they break the law during the rally," he said.
The head of the department's Peacekeeping Division, Huang Ching-fu (
Special police are officers whose primary job is to keep order during mass demonstrations.
Huang said that maintaining the security of the Double Ten National Day celebration site, making sure foreign guests attending the celebration could easily enter and leave the site and preventing violence between rival groups outside parade site would be priorities.
Police imposed traffic control restrictions on roads of the Presidential Office yesterday that bar all vehicles from entering the streets near the Presidential Office. The restrictions will remain in effect through tomorrow.
Taipei MRT officials also announced yesterday that all exits of the National Taiwan University Hospital Station, Xiaonanmen Station and some of exits for the CKS Memorial Hall Station will be closed from 6am tomorrow until the the end of the official ceremony.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice yesterday designated a number of Taipei prosecutors to monitor tomorrow's protest.
The ministry said in a statement that anyone breaking the law would be prosecuted.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
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