TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Taiwan's Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) defended police enforcement protocols Thursday (April 24) amid mounting political tensions, calling for demonstrators to abide by the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the island's primary legislation governing public protests. Her comments came as the opposition Kuomintang (KMT, 國民黨), Taiwan's historically dominant political party, prepares for a major demonstration scheduled for Saturday.
The minister's remarks follow a contentious incident involving Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安), who has come under fire from councilors of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP, 民進黨), Taiwan's current governing party. DPP officials accused Chiang of improperly entering a restricted section of the Taipei District Prosecutors Office (臺北地方檢察署) last week, an allegation the mayor firmly rejected, asserting that Minister Liu lacked authority to judge his conduct.
During Thursday's press briefing, Minister Liu maintained her policy of avoiding commentary on specific incidents while emphasizing that the protest legislation contains unambiguous guidelines for public assemblies. Reporters pressed the minister regarding the legal interpretation of restricted area violations, to which she responded by directing them to examine the relevant statutes rather than offering her personal assessment.
The interior minister also deflected questions about a separate controversy in southern Taiwan, where Kaohsiung authorities recently filed charges against a woman with the surname Chen for allegedly disseminating misinformation about former Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊). Police invoked the "Social Order Maintenance Act" (社會秩序維護法), a broad public order statute, prompting critics to accuse officials of overzealous enforcement of speech regulations. Minister Liu declined to address the specifics, referring journalists to local police for clarification. ★
