The chief organizer of the human-chain rally that is slated to take place on Feb. 28 announced yesterday that the event has so far received overwhelming support nationwide, with the number of scheduled participants exceeding 1 million.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Deputy Secretary General Lee Ying-yuan (
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
Giving a report on the progress of the rally, Lee said the quick surge in the number of participants has cheered the morale of the organizers, but has also made transporting the throng of participants an acute problem.
Lee said there are about 9,000 buses available in the country, but even that number would be insufficient to carry all of the participants.
"We hope people can use all kinds of transport, including bicycles, motorcycles, cars or even walking to support the activity," Lee said.
Supporters of the rally, which is being jointly organized by the DPP, Taiwan Solidarity Union and hundreds of private groups advocating Taiwanese independence gathered yesterday in Taipei to appeal for lasting peace, freedom and democracy and to oppose China's aiming of missiles at Taiwan.
Annie Lee (
She said the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) in the past five decades has educated people to believe many things that are irrelevant to the well-being of Taiwan, including asking people here to retake China, to build a prosperous China and to liberate the Chinese people living in dire conditions under the rule of the communist party.
"But these demands are irrelevant, vague and unreal to us. To many of us here, the idea of China -- this so-called motherland -- is very vague, and we don't know what it looks like. What is real to us is the land that we stand on and live in. That is what we care about," Lee said.
She said the event aims to invite people to redefine their national identity, to demand China respect Taiwanese people's will and to let the world understand that the people of Taiwan are not the pawns of the Chinese.
Urging more people to attend the rally and to write a new chapter in Taiwan's democracy, Lee reminded supporters to bring three gadgets with them on the day of the rally: cellphones, digital cameras and radios.
The rally will span 500km in length along the north-south provincial highways on the west coast, from Keelung County to Pingtung County. All participants are expected to hold hands at 2:28pm on Feb. 28.
Participants are encouraged to use cellphones to spread text messages about the event, while the digital cameras will be used to keep photographic records which will then be published online to be viewed worldwide. Information regarding the rally will also be broadcast on the radio.
National Policy Adiser Alice King (
"Eighty-five percent of Japanese agree that Taiwan's remaining a democratic and free country and not becoming a part of China are very important to Japan. Japanese are actually more concerned about whether Taiwan could insist on walking its own road and not be swallowed by China. Because if that happens, Chinese naval power can penetrate the Western Pacific, which would endanger Japan's security," King said.
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