Politicians from across party lines yesterday condemned the protesters who blocked foreign athletes from entering the Taipei Municipal Stadium during the Summer Universiade opening ceremony on Saturday.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) was to welcome the athletes to the Universiade.
The teams were lined up to enter the stadium in alphabetical order, but only those from nations whose names start with the letters “A” or “B” were able to enter the building after 7pm. The others were represented only by flag bearers. The blockage ended at about 8pm.
Photo: Peter Lo, Taipei Times
The Taipei City Government was the first to condemn the protesters.
City spokesman Liu Yi-ting (劉奕霆) said the protesters deliberately obstructed the ceremony, breaking the law, minimizing the legitimacy of their appeals and making themselves a global laughing stock.
Presidential Office spokesman Sidney Lin (林鶴明) also used “the most severe” terms to denounce the protesters and demanded that government agencies “investigate the illegal act and mete out punishments.”
They threatened the safety of attendants and athletes, violating the law and damaging the nation’s global image, he added.
Deputy Legislative Speaker Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) said he felt “pain and more pain” after seeing the protest.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康) accused the protesters of being willing to “sell everything for the sake of getting [pension] money.”
The protesters are “a shame of Taiwan,” DPP Legislator Cheng Yun-peng (鄭運鵬) said.
Having only flags and no athletes at the stadium “was not the right way of letting the world see Taiwan,” New Power Party Legislator Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislative caucus whip Lin Wei-chou (林為洲), whose party is sympathetic to the protesters’ cause, expressed regret over the incident, saying the event was a “rare chance” for Taiwan to be seen by the world.
Lin said he respects the protesters’ right to voice their views regarding a government policy, but added that any opinion should be expressed in a reasonable way.
Their views should be made known just to Tsai and the media, he said. “Expressing it in a way that affects the athletes’ freedom of movement goes overboard.”
The protests would affect the world’s perception of Taiwan, former Taipei mayor Hau Lung-pin (郝龍斌) of the KMT said yesterday, adding that despite his sympathy for the protesters, he feels they are going about it the wrong way.
There were athletes from around the world in attendance and the events were televised globally, he said, adding that protesting at such a significant ceremony is not appropriate and hurts the nation’s image.
“Letting the Universiade get soiled in such a way is not worth it and I strongly condemn the protesters for their actions,” he said.
New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu (朱立倫) of the KMT also expressed regret over the protests, saying that hosting the event is meant to show Taiwan’s passion for athletics.
The nation has come together to show their support for this opportunity, he said, adding that whatever the reasons behind the protests, they can only negatively affect the nation and disturb the athletes.
“I hope the rest of the event will go smoothly and peacefully, and that everyone will work together to support this goal,” he said.
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