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Protesters ready for ECFA sit-in
By Vincent Y. Chao
STAFF REPORTER
Thursday, May 20, 2010, Page 3
Members of a group that supports a referendum
on the signing of an economic cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China
clap as a mock award is presented during a press conference in Taipei yesterday.
PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
Protesters will converge on Taipei City today, the second anniversary of
President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) inauguration, for a three-day sit-in to increase
pressure on the government to hold a referendum on its proposed economic
cooperation framework agreement (ECFA) with China.
The protest, which is expected to draw hundreds of people from dozens of
pro-independence organizations, will begin at noon in front of the Legislative
Yuan’s Jinan Road entrance and will conclude at 10pm on Saturday.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) officials
have pledged to attend the sit-in. DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and TSU
Chairperson Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝) are expected to arrive at 2pm.
AWARENESS
Former Government Information Office (GIO) minister Pasuya Yao (姚文智),
spokesperson for the protest organizers, said yesterday that the sit-in was
designed to raise awareness of the controversial trade pact and express
disapproval of Ma’s policies.
“We hope the public will join the event. We want to show a different voice to
the international community, especially on the Ma administration’s second
anniversary,” Yao said.
Chief among their demands is that the government first put the ECFA to a public
vote before continuing negotiations with China.
They argue that the agreement could have a negative impact on traditional
industries and the agricultural sector, as well as affecting middle class
salaries because of an influx of cheaper goods from China.
Organizers, who include former premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷), the ECFA Referendum
Action Committee and a number of pro-independence organizations, have also
expressed worries that the government’s China policies are “selling out”
Taiwan’s sovereignty and could be a stepping stone toward eventual unification.
SHIFTS
The three-day sit-in will be split into 20 periods of two hours each, with civic
groups and non-profit organizations encouraged to “adopt” daytime time slots,
while the protest organizers will continue the sit-in overnight between 10pm and
6am.
Former cabinet secretary-general and protest organizer Lee Ying-yuan (李應元) said
public response to the protest had been strong and that they expected the slots
to be filled before the event starts.
A separate area has also been set aside for individual participants, organizers
said, adding that attendees are encouraged to wear green to symbolize Taiwan’s
sovereignty.
Wireless Internet access will be provided to allow real-time updates of the
protest.
Concerns have been raised in the past week by the Taipei City Government as well
as school organizations that the noise from the sit-in could affect junior high
school students taking the basic competence test for high school admissions.
As many as 2,000 students are expected to take the test, which will be held over
the weekend in nearby Chenggong Municipal high school, 500m from the location of
the sit-in.
Organizers pledged yesterday to take the issue seriously and said they would
remind protesters to turn down the volume and ensure that loudspeakers face away
from the high school.
They also said they had canceled a planned march around the legislature.
“We will make less noise … than [nearby] National Taiwan University students
playing basketball,” Lee said, adding that they would invite Taipei City
government officials to assess noise levels.
Activities at the sit-in will include speeches, information sessions and a mock
awards ceremony poking fun at Ma and a number of his Cabinet officials,
organizers said.
National Taiwan University economics professor and Taiwan Thinktank chairman
Chen Po-chih (陳博志), who recently published a book on an ECFA, will deliver a
lecture on the agreement’s impact on Taiwan at 7pm tonight.
FORETASTE
The protest is widely seen as a precursor to a larger rally being planned by the
DPP that will likely start in the middle of next month.
The DPP rally, also against an ECFA, is expected to take the place of a number
of other protests organized by pro-independence organizations, including one
originally announced for June 6.
An ECFA referendum drive organized by the TSU, currently in the review stage,
could if passed be staged along with the Nov. 27 special municipality elections.
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