Taiwan Stands With Hong Kong Democracy Protests in Mass Marches

Sunday, September 29 saw a wave of pro-Hong Kong democracy demonstrations across Taiwan as part of an effort across 24 countries under the umbrella of Global Anti-Totalitarianism rallies.

Organizers in Taiwan reported an attendance of up to 100,000 in Taipei, with around 8,000 outside the capital: 5,000 in Kaohsiung, 2,000 in Tainan, 800 in Taichung and 500 in Hsinchu. Worldwide, events took place in 64 cities.

Despite inclement weather due to an approaching typhoon in Taipei, the area around the Legislative Yuan was thronging with demonstrators just after the 3 p.m. meeting time. By 4 p.m., the march set off with at least 10,000 people in tow.

“Today, Taiwanese people have shown solidarity with Hong Kongers,” Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆), deputy secretary-general for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), told Ketagalan Media. “I think it is important that we have shown that Taiwanese and Hong Kongers will always stand together to fight against authoritarianism.”

Denise Ho (何韻詩), a Hong Kong activist and singer who was present at Sunday’s Taipei rally, was attacked early in the day when she was splattered with red paint while giving an interview to journalists. The attack was reportedly carried out by Hu Chih-wei (胡志偉), chairperson of the fringe Chinese Unification Promotion Party (CUPP), and alleged accomplice Liang Tai-fu (梁太富). Ho has vowed to sue the two suspects.

“The Taiwanese people value peace and democracy as well as freedom of speech,” said Lin when asked about the attack on Ho. “It is important to Taiwanese people that we will not use violence to stop any kind of demonstration or difference of opinion, so we must respect different opinions, but not use violence.”

“This is really important for us. That’s the spirit and the values that we hold here.”

People of all ages were in attendance in Taipei, from a 3-year-old on a balance bike to an 83-year-old who completed the entire march in flip flops. Families, couples, students and groups of friends braved the pouring rain with umbrellas held aloft and flags of all descriptions flying. Many wore masks in solidarity, although the number of uncovered faces pointed clearly to the majority Taiwanese presence. (Many Hong Kongers are opting not to show their faces, even while protesting in Taiwan, due to a fear of consequences back home.)

There were numerous people kitted out in full Hong Kong protest gear who were veterans of the city’s pro-democracy protests this summer—largely students who have returned to Taiwan to resume their studies.

One university student from Hong Kong, who gave her name as Miss C., sported the first aid helmet she used in her hometown over the summer while providing medical care on the front lines.

“I got encouragement from this march,” she said. “I didn’t expect so many Taiwanese to come out and stand for us, especially on such a rainy day.”

In Taipei, the vast majority of attendees appeared to be Taiwanese. Some Hong Kongers who are unable to protest in Hong Kong itself, due to pressures from their workplace or their civil servant families, had taken the opportunity to make the trip to Taiwan, where there they can protest without fear of ending up with a criminal conviction that could cripple their families or their professional standing.

One Hong Konger, who gave his name as Peter, provided first aid at Hong Kong’s protests but was forced to desist due to personal circumstances. “I also want to support Taiwan, and show that Hong Kong people must fight for their freedom,” he said at Sunday’s Taipei rally.

A core demand in Taiwan is for the country to reject a peace agreement with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), a move that has been touted by the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). According to the organizers, the KMT are the only major political party which has refused to sign a petition opposing a peace deal with China.

Taiwanese students from National Taiwan University (NTU) at Sunday’s Taipei protest.

One 15-year-old Taiwanese student at an international school, who gave his name as James, said he has a Hong Konger classmate who was forced to flee to Taiwan with his father. James, who took part in a demonstration in Hong Kong this summer, said he finds Taiwan a safer place to protest. “In Taiwan, the purpose of the police is to protect the people,” he said. “In Hong Kong, the purpose of the police is to protect the government.”

Like many young Taiwanese, James is concerned about the threat Taiwan faces from the PRC. “We don’t face danger in the same way [as Hong Kong] in Taiwan, but we are facing a more hidden, deeper danger from China,” he said. “We are not ready. We don’t have a feeling that we are in danger, but actually we are.”

Wang, a dual Taiwan-Hong Kong citizen, spoke of the frustration of dealing with elderly Taiwanese relatives, who he says are oblivious to the threat posed by Beijing despite their familial connection to Hong Kong.

“I want to raise awareness among Taiwanese,” he said. “Obviously, the Chinese have quite a big hand in media outlets [in Taiwan]. So it’s not surprising that some of the older people in my family will go to that news source and feel that just how it is, without double checking what is happening. They don’t really understand what Hong Kong is fighting for.”

Of course, the presence of many elderly Taiwanese at the event suggests that many still remember a darker time in Taiwan’s recent history, the White Terror, and are alert to the dangers posed by the neighboring authoritarian regime.

Some media outlets in Taiwan resolutely back the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong. For example, Taiwan’s Apple Daily wrapped Sunday morning’s newspaper with a special heavyweight fold designed for people to carry at Sunday’s events with stunning artwork reflecting the fight Hong Kong is going through.

As the demonstrators wended their way through the streets, there were pockets of consistent chanting in Cantonese, Mandarin and English led by KTV trucks while others raised cheers on an ad hoc basis.

One cheerful Taiwanese A-gong (grandpa) had positioned himself on the corner by the National Health Insurance building. When he spotted a quiet patch in the rally he would gleefully dart forward and shout out “Xiang Gang: Jia you! Taiwan: Jia you!” until he raised a hearty response from the marchers. A-gong told Ketagalan Media he intended to keep it up for the length of the march.

‘A-gong’

The march wound up back at the Legislative Yuan around 6.30 p.m., where speakers and singers kept a reasonable crowd entertained until 8.30, despite heavy rains. Stalls were set up for free screen printing of clothing, bags, or paper—anything that was dry was possible. A Lennon ship and post-it notes were also on hand.

Mimi, a Taiwanese attendee at the Kaohsiung rally, said the crowd mostly consisted of young people along with a sizable contingent of Hong Kongers. Mimi had attended with family members because of the outrageous situation with the police in Hong Kong. She said she feared that Hong Kong shows the potential for what might happen to Taiwan in the future. “If Hong Kong does not have democracy, the next may be Taiwan,” she said.

Hong Konger Esther Lau of the “Hong Kong Outlanders” student group in Taiwan, which was a key organizer of the event, spoke of the role of Taiwan’s demonstrations as part of 64 events around the world. Esther told Ketagalan Media that organizers were pleasantly surprised by the attendance at Taiwan’s rallies, especially in the southern part of Taiwan, saying that the combined turnout of 7,000 in Kaohsiung and Taiwan was incredible.

Alvin Chang, a representative of the Taiwan Youth Association for Democracy, another key event organizer, was pleased with the turnout in Taipei, undoubtably the largest for a Hong Kong demonstration in Taiwan to date. Chang said he believed that it would apply great pressure on Beijing.

Back in Taipei on Sunday evening, the rally drew to a close after performances from Denise Ho and indigenous activist Panai Kusui, among others. Esther explained that, for Hong Kongers returning from the front line, the idea of having post marching entertainment was a little discordant, since the fight is not yet over.

As the event was disbanded and people began streaming out with hands raised in the symbol for “Five Demands, Not One Less,” a small group of Hong Kongers rounded out the evening in Hong Kong style leading the remaining crowd in boisterous chants as their compatriots lit up their flags with their laser pens.

All photos by Cat Thomas.