A rally calling for patriotism for the Republic of China (ROC), restoration of social order and support for the police is to take place in Taipei tomorrow as the organizer, the New Party, yesterday urged participants to bring a national flag to demonstrate loyalty to the country.
“Everyone is welcome to the rally as long as they consider themselves a citizen of the ROC. Bring your national flag to support democracy, rule of law and the police,” New Party Chairman Yok Mu-ming (郁慕明) told a press conference.
The real intention behind the recent spate of protests since the student-led Sunflower movement against the cross-strait service trade agreement, followed by action against the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s Gongliao District (貢寮), was to “topple the whole system, mess up society and push Taiwan toward independence,” Yok said.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Yok said the people pushing for independence deserve severe condemnation.
“Are you done? You won’t be able to establish the country you want even if you overthrow the ROC. How much longer do we have to endure the protests?” he said.
Timed to coincide with the date of the “May 4th Movement” when thousands of students protested against the Treaty of Versailles that acknowledged Japan’s territorial claims in China on May 4, 1919, which was regarded as an icon of patriotism in China, the rally on Sunday is termed by the New Party as the “New May 4th Movement.”
The New May 4th Movement would be a patriot movement calling on the people to love the country by abiding by the rule of law, Yok said.
“Only when we are able to sustain the ROC by obeying the rules of the game of democracy can society remain stable, and people live and work here in peace and contentment,” he said.
Families of police officers and their friends will join the rally to express their support for the police, who have faced a significant workload over the past two months, Yok said.
The death of 45-year-old police officer Ker Hsiung-fei (柯雄飛) in Miaoli County of a stroke after being deployed to clear Sunflower movement protesters at the Executive Yuan compound in Taipei on March 24 was attributed to overwork, Central Police University associate professor Yeh Yu-lan (葉毓蘭) said.
“Ker was not the only one. A police officer in Changhua County died when trying to save a child from a car crash, while a police officer in Taipei also suffered a stroke,” Yeh said.
The rally will begin at 2pm on Ketagalan Boulevard.
Separately, two youth leagues of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) also called for people to take to the streets tomorrow to voice their support for the police to strengthen law enforcement measures, and to appeal for stability and social order.
The rally will march from Taipei Railway Station to the National Police Agency beginning at 9am.
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