Activists, academics ‘surrender’ to protest law

By Loa Iok-sin
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Jul 14, 2009, Taipei Times, Page 1

Members of Academia Sinica, professors and social activists attend a press conference in Taipei yesterday to protest against the Assembly and Parade Act and show their support for Lee Ming-tsung and Lin Chia-fan, who face charges under the act.
PHOTO: LO PEI-DER, TAIPEI TIMES

More than 120 academics and human rights activists said yesterday they would turn themselves in to prosecutors for breaking the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) in a protest against the legislation.

One after another, more than 30 people gave their name and occupation at a press conference in Taipei, telling prosecutors that they had violated the Act and would like to turn themselves in.

They did so in a show of support for National Taiwan University (NTU) sociology professor Lee Ming-tsung (李明璁) and Taiwan Association for Human Rights chairman Lin Chia-fan (林佳範), who have been indicted for contravening the Act in May and last month respectively.

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EDITORIAL: An exercise in wasting time

Wednesday, Apr 29, 2009, Page 8

For civic groups that long hoped for an overhaul of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the amendment expected to pass soon is disheartening. It fails to resolve the problems with the law that prompted calls for an amendment in the first place.
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Activists pan changes to Assembly and Parade Act

By Shelley Huang
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Apr 28, 2009, Page 2

Civic groups yesterday slammed the government over a proposed amendment to the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) that would require demonstrators to notify authorities of any demonstration ahead of time, saying that it violated international conventions.

The Taiwan Association for Human Rights said the amendment was not only a violation of human rights, but that it also violated the UN’s International Convenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which was ratified by the legislature last month.
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