Student activists and residents affected by a proposed land expropriation plan for Hsinchu’s R1 Boulevard project protested outside the Ministry of the Interior in Taipei yesterday, questioning the need for the road and saying that the project was connected to development plans designed to attract Chinese tourists.
Led by the Anti-R1 Action League, protesters raised banners and shouted slogans outside the ministry, as the Land Expropriation Evaluation Committee held its second meeting for the project.
The proposed road, an elevated expressway which cuts through hilly terrain in Hsinchu’s Siangshan District (香山), was proposed in 2010 by Hsinchu Mayor Hsu Ming-tsai (許明財), a member of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
Chen Wen-hsian (陳文賢), a farmer in his 60s who lives near the entrance of the proposed road at its intersection with the West Coast Expressway (Provincial Highway No. 61), said his family has been forced to relocate eight times over the years because of the many land expropriation projects.
“The proposed road would cost NT$4.6 billion [US$153 million] to build, but according to the city government, it will only save an average of 2.8 minutes for commuters,” Chen said. “After we voiced our concerns, they changed their story and said it would actually save 9.8 minutes [for commuters]. The numbers just keep on changing.”
Anti-R1 Action League member Wang Shao-fan (汪少凡), a student at National Tsin Hua University in Hsinchu, said that the road was being built for tourists from China, referring to the city’s plans to establish an “International Health Park” in the area to promote medical tourism.
“Hsu has been promoting the idea of direct transportation between Hsinchu’s Nanliao Harbor (南寮) and Fujian Province’s Pingtan County (平潭) [in China],” Wang said. “The R1 Boulevard will lead directly from the coast to the International Health Park, which will cater to medical tourists from China.”
“These projects are connected to the KMT’s framework of establishing free economic pilot zones around the country, which may lead to a commercialization of healthcare services,” Wang added.
Hsu has stated his intent to establish a free economic pilot zone in Hsinchu, a controversial policy proposed by President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration in which international businesses would enjoy tax exemptions and other incentives in the special zones.
While the government says the pilot zones will promote foreign investment in several sectors, including health care, education, agricultural processing, financial services and logistics, critics say they will increase the nation’s economic reliance on China, as well as lead to the commercialization of public services.
Lin Chia-cheng (林家正), a senior executive officer at the ministry’s Department of Land Administration, said the committee has asked the Hsinchu City Government to provide more information on the project to answer the concerns of protesters, before it can determine whether a third meeting would take place.
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