Condemn on the Violent Abuse of the State

Taiwan Association for Human Rights

Translator: David K. W. Wu

The Occupy Movement in the “Legislative Yuan” (the Parliament in Taiwan), against the un-transparent and illegitimate procedure on the Cross-Strait Services Trade Agreement (CSSTA), has been demanding the President Ma Ying-jeou and its administration to withdrawal CSSTA, and to legislate the supervisory institution on CSSTA . However, after the six-day Occupy Movement, a great part of the protesters, who are disappointed with the Administration’s insincere respond, volunteer to have the peaceful demonstration into the “Executive Yuan” (the Cabinet) on March 23^rd, since the President Ma Ying-jeou and its administration refuse on the benign communication with the people. The Administration, which could not solve the great social anxieties caused by CSSTA, is certainly the culprit provoking the people. What’s worse, such agitating incident happens in the March 24^th midnight, which the water-cannons and tear-gas reappear on the streets as the tremendous suppression on the protestors. The police force has lost its legitimacy and has fallen as the violent measure of the state abuse: Thousands of armless protesters, and reporters, are severely beaten. Dozens are injured. The democratic regime has fallen into the police state.

The un-transparent and illegitimate procedure on CSSTA on March 17^th, by Koumingtang (KMT), which agitates the great demonstration: Thousands of protestors are at the Legislative Yuan, the Executive Yuan, and the local headquarters of KMT. The protestors are concerned with their constitutional liberties and social rights, which could be severely affected by the CSSTA. Any democratic and liberal state should secure the freedom and the rights of expression of the people, instead of violent suppression upon the civil movement. We must claim that any abuse of police force should never interfere with the peaceful social movement.

However, from the visit of Chairman Chen Yun-lin (of Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits) in the year 2008, to the Occupy Movement against the illegitimate procedure on CSSTA now, the escalating forces suppressing on people, would prove the state abuse is an unbalanced and authoritarian power of the government: the fear of reappearance of the White Terror. The President Ma Ying-jeou and its administration is indeed the culprit for the democratic regression and the human rights declination.

Any violence is intolerable, especially the administrative power with the law abuses. Dozens of civil unions defending our democratic regime from state violence have witnessed the abuse of the power, that we would associate with law professionals and civil unions, to help with the victims take action on the political and legal accountabilities of the government with no tolerance.

Our demands are as follows:

The President Ma Ying-jeou and the administration must stop all provocations on people, and stop using illegitimate force to suppress and to expel the peaceful demonstrations.
The Presidential Office, and Executive Yuan, and Legislative Yuan must immediately hold the Civil Constitution Conference to solve the constitutional crisis.
Our government must withdraw the “Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement” and immediately legislate the mechanism for supervision of cross-strait agreements.