Dozens of young men dressed in black came out yesterday in support of Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林), closely following him as he made his way to a university in Yunlin County.
Local politicians and some of the protesters at the scene said the young men, most of whom looked like high school or college students, were connected to local gangs, although the reports could not be confirmed.
About 50 of them, smoking and forming a line beside the main entrance to National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, seemed to take orders from plainclothes officers, raising questions about their involvement in Chen’s controversial visit to the south, an opposition stronghold.
They were told by one senior plainclothes officer to “take a stroll,” when members of the press approached and attempted to take photographs. The young men immediately complied.
The officer, identified by his National Police Agency lanyard, refused to answer questions about the young men and denied that they were following his orders.
Police later said that based on their understanding, the young men were students and were not members of any gang.
County councilors at the scene, speaking privately given the sensitivity of the matter, said the group was most likely mobilized by local figures connected to pro-unification factions and were there in support of the Chinese envoy.
Tensions increased when Yunlin County Councilor Tsai Chiu-min (蔡秋敏) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), leading a few other protesters, confronted the group, asking them why they were there. Police stepped in to intervene.
When Tsai was asked who she thought the group of young men were, she said they had been “bought” and “brainwashed” by China.
“This is what happens when our education curriculum does not clearly define what [Taiwanese] sovereignty is,” she said.
Asked what they were doing at the scene, one of the young men, who appeared to be the leader, said they were there to ensure that Chen’s meeting went smoothly.
However, he avoided questions about which organization he belonged to.
Another said they wanted to “protect the director,” referring to the head of the local farming association who was meeting Chen.
Holding lilies in his hand, he said he was “concerned” protesters would bring jasmine, referring to the democratic protests that have swept across North Africa and the Middle East.
Representatives of the farming association could not be reached for comment.
Despite their presence, police still assigned the vast majority of uniformed officers to prevent the 60 protesters chanting slogans and holding placards across the street from blocking the university entrance.
The group did not return after police asked them to leave.
When Chen visited Taipei and Taichung in 2008 and 2009, hundreds of black-shirted supporters calling themselves unification advocates were seen in some of the places he visited.
Chang An-le (張安樂), a fugitive known as the “White Wolf,” a former leader of the Bamboo Union gang, at the time claimed responsibility for sending the group, saying they were there to assist police in carrying out their duties.
NATIONAL SECURITY: The Chinese influencer shared multiple videos on social media in which she claimed Taiwan is a part of China and supported its annexation Freedom of speech does not allow comments by Chinese residents in Taiwan that compromise national security or social stability, the nation’s top officials said yesterday, after the National Immigration Agency (NIA) revoked the residency permit of a Chinese influencer who published videos advocating China annexing Taiwan by force. Taiwan welcomes all foreigners to settle here and make families so long as they “love the land and people of Taiwan,” Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) told lawmakers during a plenary session at the Legislative Yuan in Taipei. The public power of the government must be asserted when necessary and the Ministry of
CROSSED A LINE: While entertainers working in China have made pro-China statements before, this time it seriously affected the nation’s security and interests, a source said The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) late on Saturday night condemned the comments of Taiwanese entertainers who reposted Chinese statements denigrating Taiwan’s sovereignty. The nation’s cross-strait affairs authority issued the statement after several Taiwanese entertainers, including Patty Hou (侯佩岑), Ouyang Nana (歐陽娜娜) and Michelle Chen (陳妍希), on Friday and Saturday shared on their respective Sina Weibo (微博) accounts a post by state broadcaster China Central Television. The post showed an image of a map of Taiwan along with the five stars of the Chinese flag, and the message: “Taiwan is never a country. It never was and never will be.” The post followed remarks
Proposed amendments would forbid the use of all personal electronic devices during school hours in high schools and below, starting from the next school year in August, the Ministry of Education said on Monday. The Regulations on the Use of Mobile Devices at Educational Facilities up to High Schools (高級中等以下學校校園行動載具使用原則) state that mobile devices — defined as mobile phones, laptops, tablets, smartwatches or other wearables — should be turned off at school. The changes would stipulate that use of such devices during class is forbidden, and the devices should be handed to a teacher or the school for safekeeping. The amendments also say
CONSISTENT COMMITMENT: The American Institute in Taiwan director said that the US would expand investment and trade relationships to make both nations more prosperous The US would not abandon its commitment to Taiwan, and would make Taiwan safer, stronger and more prosperous, American Institute in Taiwan Director Raymond Greene said. “The US’ commitment to Taiwan has been consistent over many administrations and over many years, and we will not abandon our commitment to Taiwan, including our opposition to any attempt to use force or coercion to change Taiwan’s status,” he said in an exclusive interview with the Liberty Times (the sister newspaper of the Taipei Times) on Friday last week, which was published in the Chinese-language newspaper yesterday. The US would double down on its efforts
RSS