Three members of an association opposed to an elevated railway in Taoyuan said on Tuesday that indictments against them amounting to a possible seven years in prison were “unjust.”
On Aug. 2 last year, the Promote Subways in Taoyuan Association staged a protest in front of the Taoyuan County Government building during a visit to the area by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九). The protest was held in opposition to the construction of an elevated railway, which they said would require the reclamation of 4,000 homes and 322 hectares of farmland.
“It’s a very steep price,” the protesters said of the proposed expropriations.
Last week, prosecutors indicted association director Hsu Wei (許為), deputy-director Hsieh Hsin-man (謝新滿) and director-general Lee Chun-hui (李春輝).
The prosecutors cited Article 136 of the Criminal Code as the basis of their indictments. Article 136 states that masterminds and perpetrators of mass violence may be indicted on charges that carry a prison sentence of a minimum of one year and a maximum of seven years.
Hsieh told a press conference hosted by DPP Legislator Huang Jen-chu (黃仁杼) on Tuesday that he felt the whole scenario was a setup to arrest the protesters because the police told them a scooter parking lot could serve as the petition area and that they could “with moderation express [their] wishes to the president.”
However, police began shoving the protesters and started arresting them when the president arrived, Lee said.
“I won’t regret [protesting] even if the court finds me guilty for trying to protect the citizens of the county,” Lee said, adding that “the government is sick, because no one cares about the forced expropriation of people’s land and homes.”
Taoyuan County deputy chief Yang Ming-sheng (楊明昇) dismissed Lee’s allegation and said the members of the association were interfering with the duties of the police and that the arrests were carried out in accordance with the law.
However, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Tien Chiu-chin (田秋堇) said the incident was being used “to make an example” of the association and scare off others who might have ideas of protesting to the president.
DPP legislator-at-large nominee Wu Yi-chen (吳宜臻) said a video recording of the protest gave no indication that there was sufficient evidence to charge the three with initiating the scuffle, adding that it was inconceivable that the prosecutors were relying on Article 136.
Saying the judiciary had become a tool to oppress the public, Huang presented a large plaque that read “The Three Subway Heroes” to the three association members at their court hearing yesterday.
“China is preparing to invade Taiwan,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Francois Wu (吳志中) said in an exclusive interview with British media channel Sky News for a special report titled, “Is Taiwan ready for a Chinese invasion?” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today in a statement. The 25-minute-long special report by Helen Ann-Smith released yesterday saw Sky News travel to Penghu, Taoyuan and Taipei to discuss the possibility of a Chinese invasion and how Taiwan is preparing for an attack. The film observed emergency response drills, interviewed baseball fans at the Taipei Dome on their views of US President
ECONOMIC BENEFITS: The imports from Belize would replace those from Honduras, whose shrimp exports have dropped 67 percent since cutting ties in 2023 Maintaining ties with Taiwan has economic benefits, Ministry of Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday, citing the approval of frozen whiteleg shrimp imports from Belize by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an example. The FDA on Wednesday approved the tariff-free imports from Belize after the whiteleg shrimp passed the Systematic Inspection of Imported Food, which would continue to boost mutual trade, the ministry said. Taiwan’s annual consumption of whiteleg shrimps stands at 30,000 tonnes, far exceeding domestic production, the ministry said. Taiwan used to fill the gap by importing shrimps from Honduras, but purchases slumped after Tegucigalpa severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan
The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a southwestern extension of the Sanying MRT Line from New Taipei to Bade District (八德) in Taoyuan, with a goal of starting construction by late 2026. The 4.03-kilometer extension, featuring three new stations, will run from the current terminus at Yingtao Fude Station (LB12) in New Taipei City to Dannan Station (LB14), where it will connect with Taoyuan’s Green Line, New Taipei City Metro Corp said in a statement. This extension will follow the completion of core Sanying Line, a 14.29-kilometer medium-capacity system linking Tucheng (土城), Sansia (三峽)
CARGO LOSS: About 50 containers at the stern of the ‘Ever Lunar’ cargo ship went overboard, prompting the temporary closure of the port and disrupting operations Evergreen Marine Corp, Taiwan’s largest container shipper, yesterday said that all crew members aboard the Ever Lunar (長月) were safe after dozens of containers fell overboard off the coast of Peru the previous day. The incident occurred at 9:40am on Friday as the Ever Lunar was anchored and waiting to enter the Port of Callao when it suddenly experienced severe rolling, Evergreen said in a statement. The rolling, which caused the containers to fall, might have been caused by factors including a tsunami triggered by an earthquake in Russia, poor winter sea conditions in South America or a sudden influx of waves,