Residents of HoulongTownship (後龍) , Miaoli County, yesterday accused police of physically assaulting them for protesting the construction of funeral facility and cemetery park and accused Miaoli County Commissioner Liu Cheng-hung (劉政鴻) of illegal colluding with the private developer of the project.
A video recording shown at a press conference organized by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers Wu Yi-chen (吳宜臻) and Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) showed hundreds of Miaoli police officers pushing their way into the crowd to guard the entrance to the site and clashing with the protesters, most of whom were elderly farmers, at about 6am on Wednesday.
Contractors were able to start construction work on the Gods Park, a 24.8 hectare funeral facility and cemetery park described by the Miaoli County Government as its flagship “Build-Own-Operate” (BOO) project, after more than 300 policemen cleared the site, leaving at least one woman injured.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
The woman, Du Lin Yin-mei (杜林銀妹) showed her head injury at the press conference and said police officers carrying riot shields and truncheons had said nothing before they started to push and hit demonstrators, who were part of a self-help group.
National Police Administration section chief Chen Chin-ling (陳金陵) said Miaoli police cleared the crowd because the protesters had caused serious traffic concerns by blocking Provincial Highway No. 1, but he said the county police department would review its enforcement procedures.
The Miaoli County Police Department did not send a representatives to the press conference.
Chen Chi-mai said the police department had abused its power by using unnecessary force against peaceful and unarmed demonstrators.
The incident was the latest in a long list of controversial law enforcement cases in Miaoli County, after the county government seized farmland in Dapu Township (大埔) by blocking off roads and sending excavators into farms in June 2010, attracting national attention, Chen said.
“This is a second Dapu incident and once again County Commissioner Liu has made himself the enemy of the people with his ruthlessness,” Chen added.
Wu described the incident as a second “Shilin (士林) incident,” referring to an incident where a local government acted to protect contractors against protesting members of the public.
The Shilin incident grabbed the national spotlight in late March, when police officers were ordered by the Taipei City Government to evict residents from a 135-year-old two-story building in Shilin District belonging to a family surnamed Wang, in order to make way for an urban renewal project.
Longkeng Village (龍坑) head Kuo Kuei-hui (郭貴輝) said neither the government nor the contractor had bothered to consult local people about the God’s Park project, which began in 2007, and that residents are worried about environmental pollution and the park’s proximity to two elementary schools.
Liu used his administrative powers to reduce the minimum legal distance between schools and cemeteries from 300m to 250m, self-help group president Hsu Chin-fu (許金福) said.
“And the change was made after the agreement was signed between Miaoli County Government and the contractors,” Hsu added.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS