Dozens of young protesters opposed to same-sex marriage yesterday staged a brief sit-in in front of the Legislative Yuan building, accusing advocates of the legalization of same-sex marriage of “rainbow bullying” and demanding an immediate halt to a legislative review of the same-sex marriage draft bills.
Wearing surgical masks marked with a large “X” as a symbol of what they say is their silencing by same-sex marriage supporters, a group of about 20 members from the Protection of Family Value Students Organization, the Youth Self-Awareness Alliance and the Taiwan’s Hope Rescue Alliance yesterday urged more like-minded young people to step forward and let their voices be heard.
“There is not just one voice in this society. Contrary to news media’s claims that the majority of young Taiwanese support the legalization of gay marriage, many people like us are actually against it,” Protection of Family Values Students’ Organization convener Shih Chun-yu (施俊宇) said.
Photo: CNA
Shih said they had been deterred by “rainbow bullying” from voicing their opinions about same-sex marriage.
“Younger people never experienced first-hand the White Terror era, but we are dumbfounded to find ourselves unable to express our opinions in what we thought was free and democratic nation,” Shih said.
“When homosexual people want to get married and amend our heterosexual laws, why can’t heterosexuals voice their opinions?” Shih said, calling for a referendum to be held on the issue and unbiased media reporting.
He added that they would stage a more drastic and larger-scale protest if lawmakers insist on railroading draft amendments through the legislature in the current legislative session.
A legislative committee meeting to review bills concerning the legalization of same-sex marriage is to be held on Dec. 26. However, in addition to periodic protests by opponents of homosexual unions, another hurdle to the government’s plan to achieve marriage equality is a lack of consensus among lawmakers on whether to amend the Civil Code or enact a new law dedicated to homosexual partnerships. The latter proposal has been criticized as being discriminatory.
A member of the Protection of Family Values Students’ Organization, surnamed Chao (趙) said she was subjected to “rainbow bullying” online after she posted her thoughts on a discussion board following a public hearing on the legalization of same-sex marriage last month.
“They [pro-gay marriage netizens] mocked my photograph and said my remarks were illogical and pure nonsense,” Chao said.
A Youth Self-Awareness Alliance spokesman who only identified himself by his surname, Weng (翁), said opponents of same-sex marriage were threatened and shouted at by supporters of marriage equality when both camps gathered near the legislature on Nov. 28.
“Is this society not tolerant of different voices? The opposing camp claims to represent diversity and human rights, yet its members have refused to listen to different opinions. This is what we call ‘rainbow bullying,’” Weng 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