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The top story from this past week involved the student protesters who had been occupying Taiwan’s legislature since March 18 and finally withdrew on Thursday, April 10 at 6pm. Thousands of people gathered around the legislature building to watch several hundred students leave the building carrying sunflowers which became a symbol of the movement.
The student protesters had been occupying the building ever since the ruling party – the Kuomintang (KMT) – tried to force the passage of an agreement that Taiwan had signed with China last year. That agreement involves trade in services. The students opposed what they are calling “black box legislation” which was hammered out behind closed doors, as well as the contents, which they say could give China a closer grip over Taiwan.
Proponents of the trade agreement say it could help Taiwan’s struggling economy and pave the way for more similar trade agreements with other countries.
The students received considerable public support, with several hundred thousand people taking the street in support of the movement last weekend.
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Also this past week, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin has lent his support to a police chief, following a protest outside a precinct headquarters in Taipei.
On late Friday more than 1,000 people surrounded the police station before staging a sit-in outside the legislature. They demanded that a top police official resign, saying that he did not stick to his promise not to forcibly remove protestors from the square outside the legislature.
The latest flare-up occurred after student protesters vacated the legislature's main chamber Thursday evening. They had occupied the venue for 24 days to protest a controversial trade in services agreement with China. After the student protestors left, some people remained outside the legislature, and police moved to evict them from the scene.
A top police official, Fang Yang-ning, defended his action for removing protestors, but also offered a verbal resignation. The crowd then left, and around 200 people later walked to outside the legislature to continue their protest with a sit-in.
On Saturday the Taipei Mayor praised the police decision not to use force in the face of what he called an “illegal gathering”.
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And finally this past week the ruling party, the Kuomintang (KMT), has decided to continue its legal battle against President of the Legislature Wang Jin-pyng.
A KMT source said on Thursday that the party will appeal a district court ruling that allowed Wang to retain his party membership.
The KMT stripped Wang of his party membership last September, saying that Wang used his influence to sway decisions in a legal case. If stripped of party membership, Wang would lose his job as head of the legislature, a position he has held since 1999.
But Wang swiftly took legal action, saying that he was unfairly treated by the party’s disciplinary committee. He also obtained a court injunction that allowed him to stay in his party and retain his rights as a party member pending a court ruling. In March, the Taipei District Court ruled in Wang’s favor.
The KMT said that it decided to appeal the ruling out of consideration for party rules and discipline.