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Hundreds of lawyers
criticize protesters¡¦ arrests
LETTER OF THE LAW: The attorneys said the public
was entitled to freedom of expression, the arrests violated due process and the
police had used excessive force
By Chris Wang / Staff reporter
More than 500 lawyers yesterday issued a joint statement condemning what they
said were unlawful arrests and excessive use of force in dealing with protesters
this week.
¡§We cannot sit and watch law enforcement¡¦s unlawful arrests, which violated due
process of law,¡¨ they said in the statement, which had been endorsed by 510
attorneys as of noon.
National Chengchi University professor Hsu Shih-jung (®}¥@ºa), Hung Chung-yen
(¬x±R®Ë), a National Taiwan University student and several other students were
arrested on Tuesday and Wednesday during protests in Taipei over the forced
demolition of four houses in Dapu Borough (¤j®H) in Miaoli County¡¦s Jhunan
Township (¦Ë«n). They said they were injured during the arrests and accused
national security authorities of instructing police to use excessive force.
People are entitled to freedom of expression and freedom from fear, both rights
that the state could not infringe at will, the lawyers said, adding that it is
every citizen¡¦s responsibility to safeguard the freedom of speech and ensure a
society of diverse opinion on public policies.
The arrests of people who obviously had not committed criminal offenses was a
violation of the due process stipulated by the Code of Criminal Procedure
(¦D¨Æ¶D³^ªk), they said, adding that the excessive use of force had infringed basic
rights and had a chilling impact on freedom of expression.
The lawyers called for police officers deployed at protests to always uphold the
public¡¦s rights and the spirit of the rule of law. They said unlawful arrests
would constitute a criminal offense.
Senior olice officers should also be held responsible for their decisions, the
lawyers said.
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