The unprecedented occupation of the Legislative Yuan has thrust two young men, Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) and Chen Wei-ting (陳為廷), into the media spotlight.
Yet the perceived success of the student movement against the controversial service trade agreement does not belong to them alone, but is also shared by many students who have made it their life mission to usher in changes to the nation. Chou Fu-i (周馥儀), a 33-year-old doctoral candidate at National Taiwan University’s Department of History, may seem no different from other students, but those familiar with the operation of the student movement would describe her as one of the heroines behind the scenes.
Referring to herself as a “cultural movement facilitator,” Chou is the chief coordinator of the Sunflower movement and was one of the hundreds of students that broke into and seized the legislature on March 18.
Photo: Taipei Times
Not appearing in front of cameras, does not make the weight of Chou’s role any lighter.
She is responsible for handling everything that happens both inside and outside the legislature, from organizing defensive tactics against gangsters attempting to attack anti-pact protesters to managing family members of political victims wanting to enter the legislature to express support to the student protesters in person.
Having taken part in the movements against the Kuokuang Petrochemical Technology Co’s proposed eighth naphtha cracker development project and the government’s forced appropriation of farmlands in Miaoli County’s Dapu Borough (大埔), Chou is arguably a veteran social activist.
She has endeavored to bring major social issues to the attention of the public, whether by teaming up with high-profile celebrities or resorting to the soft power of words, music and movies.
“I often ask myself: ‘What can I do to create a better social movement?’” Chou said.
That question prompted her to approach Taiwanese blockbuster filmmaker Wei Te-sheng (魏德聖) and ask for his approval to screen his latest work, Kano, at the legislature on Monday to lift the spirits of the protesters.
“The main idea of the movie is that people should never be afraid of failure. Most people are of the opinion that social movements can hardly make a difference, but I want to show them there is still hope to help them abandon such defeatism,” Chou said.
Chou has shed 5kg in weight over the past two weeks, with the fears of a possible police break-in and the pressure to play a helpful role in the movement.
“I only have to see people singing on the street to entertain protesters and students sitting in a circle outside the legislature discussing the trade agreement to feel alright again,” she said.
Chou said she had worried that the trade agreement might “blur” Taiwan’s artistic and cultural potential. However, the anti-pact movement has helped stimulate thinking, strengthen the nation’s cultural subjectivity and bring to the table the issue of national identity among young Taiwanese.
The movement has forced Taiwanese to confront and understand the taboo “China problem,” Chou said.
“It has also enabled young people to have a better understanding of politics and [the possible effects of] trade liberalization,” Chou said.
Chou said she was an otaku a Japanese term referring to people who stay at home all the time — who enjoyed cooking at home and that she only took to the street because it was the right thing to do.
“I just cannot look the other way when the country is suffering,” she said.
‘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 High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS