MCLC: protesters occupy Taiwan legislature (4)

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: Terry Russell <Terry.Russell at umanitoba.ca>
Subject: protesters occupy Taiwan legislature (4)
********************************************************

Although given very little notice in the international press, an none at
all here in Canada, Taiwanese student protests against the services trade
pact with China continue. While the occupation of the Legislative Yuan
continues, riot police were brought in to clear the occupied Executive
Yuan.Their actions have resulted in numerous injuries to students and
themselves.

Terry Russell 

=======================================================

Source: The Diplomat(3/24/14):
http://thediplomat.com/2014/03/riot-police-crack-down-on-taiwanese-proteste
rs/

Riot Police Crack Down on Taiwanese Protesters
By J. Michael Cole
March 24, 2014

The standoff over a controversial trade agreement between Taiwan and China
that began on March 19 with the occupation of the legislature took a turn
for the worse on March 23 after riot police turned on protesters who had
occupied the nearby Executive Yuan, injuring several dozens.

Sunday night’s dramatic events occurred a day after an unsuccessful
meeting between Premier Jiang Yi-huah and Lin Fei-fan, one of the leaders
of the “sunflower revolution,” and following an international press
conference by President Ma Ying-jeou, who refused to meet the group’s
demands. Since March 19, tens of thousands of Taiwanese have protested
outside the legislature, while about 300 ― mostly students ― remain
shacked up inside the building.

The alliance against the services trade pact, an amalgam of student
organizations, lawyers, and civic organizations, had initially demanded
that the Cross-Strait Services Trade Agreement (CSSTA), signed in China in
June 2013, be reviewed clause-by-clause by the legislature, that a
mechanism be set to monitor future agreements with China, and that
President Ma apologize for the crisis. It later changed its demands by
requesting that the pact be annulled altogether and calling for a national
conference on the matter.

Many Taiwanese, including leading economists and politicians, fear that
the problematic pact, which was negotiated behind closed doors, will
damage vulnerable sectors of Taiwan’s economy. Others fear it plays into
Beijing’s unification goals. Although 70 percent of the public favors a
line-by-line review of the agreement, President Ma’s Chinese Nationalist
Party (KMT) broke a promise on March 19 (following deadlock in the
legislature) to hold such a review and sent it directly to a plenary
session for a vote, sparking the crisis (the KMT has a legislative
majority and the Central Committee has threatened any dissenter with
suspension).

With no sign of a resolution in sight, a group of protesters slipped past
security at the Executive Yuan, the seat of the Cabinet, at 7:35 p.m. on
March 23. Immediately the group inside the legislature distanced itself
from the action in a press release, though from the leadership on the
ground it was obvious that they belonged to the alliance. By 8:30 p.m., a
few thousand people were occupying the compound. Following a brief
standoff with police, protesters broke into the building through the main
door or by climbing ladders to upper windows. Aside from damage to the
main doors and two broken windows, there were no other signs of damage to
the building. Several thousand people also gathered on Zhongxiao Road in
front of the building.

Although police authorities had not acted on orders to evict the activists
from the legislature ― relations have in fact been rather cordial, with
protesters often applauding and thanking law enforcement ― Sunday’s
occupation of the Executive Yuan was a major escalation, and soon there
was chatter that police would intervene. The Cabinet gave the order at
10:30 p.m. and told police to do everything necessary to evict the
occupiers by 11 p.m. In response, the Democratic Front Against Cross
Strait Trade In Services, one of the groups orchestrating the occupation
at the legislature, issued a press release, in which it called on the
authorities, “to not use violence to suppress the protesters.” It also
called on the government “to not release emergency orders and to not
mobilize the armed forces.”

As hundreds of police with shields and batons formed a line in front of
the Executive Yuan, an even larger contingent of riot police, flanked by
truck-mounted water cannons, faced off with protesters behind the building
on Beiping Road. At about midnight, the order was given to rid the area of
protesters. About 200 riot police, armed with shields and batons,
descended on the protesters as the latter were about to sit down and
shouted “please don’t use force against us.” At one side, a young woman,
crying, called out to her boyfriend who was among the protesters. Several
black-clad riot police swung their batons at young protesters, while
police used their PVC shields to hit sitting protesters on the legs.
Several dozens of protesters were eventually taken out ― oftentimes shoved
violently and dragged around ― while police pushed out of the area.
Protesters complained that the riot police had masked their badge numbers.
Journalists who identified themselves as such and showed identification
were also ordered to leave.

According to unconfirmed reports, as many as 50 protesters had sustained
injuries in clashes with police since the beginning of the occupation.

Meanwhile, at the main site of the Executive Yuan, political leaders from
the opposition, including Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su
Tseng-chang and Tsai Ing-wen, the party’s presidential candidate in 2012
and a former chairperson, joined the group in a bid to prevent a police
crackdown. This did not prevent police from moving in. At 2 a.m., police
ordered media to leave the Executive Yuan, whereupon riot squads stormed
the building and evicted the several dozen protesters who were still
inside. Based on accounts by activists and the state of those who were
taken out of the building, riot police used excessive force to expel them.
Several protesters had head injuries and cuts. One woman, wearing a blazon
from the small opposition party Taiwan Solidarity Union, lay unconscious
on the ground.

By then, about 600 riot police and several hundred more law-enforcement
officers were deployed at the Executive Yuan, while a few thousands
protesters remained. Clashes were still occurring at 4:30 a.m., with
police using water cannons and tear gas against protesters, who by then
were shouting slogans calling on Ma and Jiang to step down.

Although the decision to occupy the Executive Yuan ― which did not seem to
be supported by everybody inside the legislature ― may have undermined the
alliance’s image with the public, images of police brutality against
predominantly school-age protesters were likely to mitigate the initial
drawback and exacerbate public resentment with the administration.
Conversely, some critics observed that the alliance’s decision to change
its demand from a full review of the pact in the legislature to its
annulment may have closed the door on possible negotiations and forced a
weakened Ma administration into a corner.