The Assembly and Parade Assembly Law (集會遊行法) limits freedom of expression for minority groups and should be abolished. That was the view of civic groups who were supporting two activists indicted for violating the law by demonstrating outside the Taiwan High Court yesterday.
“The Assembly and Parade Law was adopted after martial law was lifted as a tool for the government to limit freedom of expression,” Huang Chia-ping (黃佳平), a spokesman for the Alliance Against the Parade and Assembly Law, told representatives of several civic groups gathered outside the court building.
They were there supporting National Cheng-kung University Taiwanese literature professor Chung Hsiu-mei (鍾秀梅) and National Taiwan University student Pan Hsin-jung (潘欣榮). Chung and Pan were indicted for violation of the law because a demonstration they led in front of the Ministry of Education against the privatization of the education sector and increases in the cost of tuition two years ago exceeded the approved time.
The two were originally declared innocent by the Taipei District Court, but prosecutors chose to appeal. The Taiwan High Court upheld the innocent verdict yesterday.
“Minority non-governmental organizations are unable to get their voices heard through the mainstream media, taking our message to the street is an important way for us to get it across to the public,” Huang said.
While the police are supposed to remain neutral and simply maintain order during demonstrations, “they often serve as a tool for the state to repress minority groups,” Huang said.
Pan agreed.
“We wanted to speak out, but the state, through the Assembly and Parade Law, wants us to shut up,” Pan said after walking out of the court building a free man.
“There are many other laws that could regulate assemblies and parades,” said Tsai Chi-hsun (蔡季勳), secretary-general of the Taiwan Association for Human Rights, who also supports abolishing the Assembly and Parade Law. “The Road Traffic Management and Punishment Law [道路交通管理處罰條例] and the Social Order Law [社會秩序維護法] could be used — just to name just two.”
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as