More than 180,000 people yesterday celebrated LGBTQ+ equality and diversity in Taipei at East Asia’s largest Pride march, joined by Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) and the reigning queen of RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind.
Taiwan legalized same-sex marriage in 2019 in a first for East Asia, a region where the rights of sexual minorities are often either suppressed or outlawed.
The theme of the 22nd iteration of the march was “embracing inclusion,” said Fletcher Hong (小鯨), chairman of the Taiwan Rainbow Civil Action Association, the parade’s organizer.
Photo: Daniel Ceng, EPA-EFE
Inclusion has long been a goal of the LGBTQ+ community and the organizers hope that every person can be included in making national decisions and that people can respect each other’s differences, he said.
Regarding criticism of a ruling that allows Taiwanese to change their gender on their national identification card without reassignment therapy, Hong said the LGBTQ community supports people’s right to not have their identity challenged by others.
The discourse surrounding transgender women using women’s restrooms is about sowing fear and mistrust, not protecting women’s safety, he added.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Association spokesman Simon Tai (戴佑勳) said 194 groups signed up for this year’s parade, with 100 vendors including 30 nonprofit stalls in the “rainbow market” and more than 20 vendors supporting LGBTQ-friendly hotels.
Australian, British, Canadian, New Zealand, Swedish and US representative offices and groups from Malaysia, Hong Kong and Japan joined the event, he said.
Non-governmental organizations invited to speak at the event’s stage included advocacy groups for indigenous people and people with HIV, with the latter calling for attention to inadequate long-term care for aging AIDS patients, he said.
Photo: by Yu Chien-huang, AFP
Nymphia, who won RuPaul’s Drag Race in April, appeared at the parade wearing an outfit inspired by medieval armor with a rainbow flag shoulder cape.
“I just have to come back every year for the parade,” she said, describing her armor look as representing the defense of gay rights.
Hsiao led the Democratic Progressive Party delegation, marching behind a banner reading “Be Yourself.”
Photo: Ben Blanchard, Reuters
She said Taiwanese should be proud of their hard work in making the nation a beacon of progressive values.
President William Lai (賴清德) posted a video message of support on social media, saying he could not march in person this year due to prior appointments and for security reasons.
“The government will continue to work hard to put into practice gender equality so everyone in this land of Taiwan can embrace inclusion and not fear what others think,” he said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) said political parties should work together to make Taiwan a more harmonious society by supporting the right to have children regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.
TPP Legislator Chen Gau-tzu (陳昭姿) said that surrogacy legalization would benefit same-sex couples that want to raise a family.
First launched in 2003, the annual Pride parade in Taipei has grown over the years to become one of the largest in Asia.
Event organizers said that the more than 180,000 people who participated in yesterday’s event was more than last year’s 176,000 attendees.
FIREPOWER: On top of the torpedoes, the military would procure Kestrel II anti-tank weapons systems to replace aging license-produced M72 LAW launchers Taiwan is to receive US-made Mark 48 torpedoes and training simulators over the next three years, following delays that hampered the navy’s operational readiness, the Ministry of National Defense’s latest budget proposal showed. The navy next year would acquire four training simulator systems for the torpedoes and take receipt of 14 torpedoes in 2027 and 10 torpedoes in 2028, the ministry said in its budget for the next fiscal year. The torpedoes would almost certainly be utilized in the navy’s two upgraded Chien Lung-class submarines and the indigenously developed Hai Kun, should the attack sub successfully reach operational status. US President Donald Trump
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
ALL QUIET: The Philippine foreign secretary told senators she would not respond to questions about whether Lin Chia-lung was in the country The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a business delegation is visiting the Philippines, but declined to say whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) is part of the group, as Philippine lawmakers raised questions over Lin’s reported visit. The group is being led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Huang Chao-chin (黃昭欽), Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) chairman Joseph Lyu (呂桔誠) and US-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC) vice president Lotta Danielsson, the ministry said in a statement. However, sources speaking on condition of anonymity said that Lin is leading the delegation of 70 people. Filinvest New Clark City Innovation Park
TPP RALLY: The clashes occurred near the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall on Saturday at a rally to mark the anniversary of a raid on former TPP chairman Ko Wen-je People who clashed with police at a Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) rally in Taipei on Saturday would be referred to prosecutors for investigation, said the Ministry of the Interior, which oversees the National Police Agency. Taipei police had collected evidence of obstruction of public officials and coercion by “disorderly” demonstrators, as well as contraventions of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the ministry said in a statement on Sunday. It added that amid the “severe pushing and jostling” by some demonstrators, eight police officers were injured, including one who was sent to hospital after losing consciousness, allegedly due to heat stroke. The Taipei
RSS