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Mobilizing protests
not ‘normal’ part of democracy: premier
By Shih Hsiu-chuan / Staff reporter
In a statement alluding to a series of upcoming rallies organized by the
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) to protest the performance of President Ma
Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration, Premier Sean Chen yesterday said that
mobilizing people to take to the streets is not a phenomenon characteristic of a
democracy.
Chen made the remark yesterday at a Cabinet meeting, Executive Yuan spokesperson
Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) told a press conference.
At the meeting, the premier instructed the National Police Agency, which
oversees the operation of police precincts in counties and cities, to ensure
that the demonstrations adhere to the law and do not disrupt the public order or
the flow of traffic where they are held.
People have the right to peaceful assembly and to demonstrate, and the
government will protect those rights as long as the activities are within the
scope of the law. However, the government also needs to safeguard public order
and safety, Chen said.
The DPP earlier this month began hosting rallies in various counties and cities
that are to culminate in a protest on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the
Presidential Office on Jan. 13 to urge Ma to respond to its demands: that he
reshuffle the Cabinet, improve the economy, reject the Next Media Group (壹傳媒集團)
deal and hold a national affairs conference.
The party hopes to attract more than 100,000 people from across the country to
join the rally and applied for permission to stage the protest on Ketagalan
Boulevard from Jan. 12 to Jan. 15.
Chen said that the government was receptive to criticism from all sectors of
society, but hopes that dialogue can take place within existing channels because
mobilizing people to take to the streets is not a “normal” phenomenon of a
functioning democracy.
The economic concerns raised by the DPP have been thoroughly addressed by the
government via the measures it has implemented to improve the nation’s finances,
Chen said, adding that policies come to fruition gradually.
Chen urged Cabinet officials to explain the policies adopted by their respective
agencies to better communicate to the public the efforts the government is
making toward reviving the economy.
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