Civic groups and legal experts yesterday decried proposals for stricter crowd control measures to deter public disturbances and street fighting, following a number of incidents that led to Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) calling on police chiefs to crack down and maintain public safety.
Taiwan Association for Human Rights chairman Geoffrey Weng (翁國彥) told a news conference that he is concerned by a Criminal Investigation Bureau proposal to amend provisions of the Criminal Code and other laws to allow police to take action against public gatherings of three or more people deemed as threatening violence or public order.
The proposal seeks to amend Articles 149 and 150 of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) to make it easier for police to deal with gatherings involving violence or threats, including reducing a requirement from three to two warnings to disperse before police are allowed to arrest participants, he said.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
The proposal has been sent to the Ministry of Justice and the Executive Yuan, just days after Su demanded tougher action by police chiefs following brawls outside nightclubs and other entertainment venues in major cities that resulted in numerous injuries.
New Power Party Legislator Kawlo Iyun Pacidal joined the groups at the news conference to voice her opposition to the proposed amendments.
“If the amendments are passed, any gathering by at least three people in the street could be deemed as ‘open assembly with intent to commit violence or threats,’ which the police could break up and make arrests, leading to indictments and prosecution,” she said.
That would be a gross violation of people’s rights to peaceful assembly and to dissent against unjust government policies, she added.
The proposal specifying “three or more people” would leave too much gray area for authorities to wield their power against civic groups protesting public issues and runs counter to Taiwanese society’s cherished values of democracy, freedom and human rights, Kawlo said.
Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥) said that the amendments would only deal with disturbances at nightclubs and “special entertainment venues,” and are intended to combat criminal behavior.
Authorities would not engage in actions described by human rights groups as abuse or that affect the rights of citizens to stage rallies, Chen said.
Officials said that the legal basis for the proposal comes from the Organized Crime Prevention Act (組織犯罪防制條例), Article 2 of which refers to “criminal organizations” as “structured, permanent or profit-seeking organizations formed by three or more persons involved in threats, violence, fraud, intimidation or other offenses.”
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