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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 CUPP backs out as independence advocates rally
Democratic Progressive Party Taichung City Councilor Huang Shou-ta, right, speaks at a demonstration in the city planned to counter a Chinese Unity Promotion Party rally that was canceled. Photo: CNA
By Sean Lin / Staff reporter
The China Unification Promotion Party （CUPP） yesterday canceled a forum and rally scheduled to be held in Taichung, while a separate demonstration to counter the rally went ahead as planned.
In a statement dated on Friday, the party said that after an all-night discussion, its members had resolved to cancel the “peaceful unification forum.”
The decision was reached out of concern for the safety of participants and social order, it said.
The party expressed “deep regret” over the deportation of the forum’s scheduled speaker, pro-unification Chinese academic Li Yi （李毅）, saying that he had obtained permission to enter the nation “through legal procedures.”
Taiwan is a nation that respects the freedom of speech, and the CUPP wants nothing more than peace and prosperity for people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, the statement said.
The party also thanked the Taichung Police Department for allowing the forum and rally.
Meanwhile, about 100 people joined a demonstration in Taichung to “protect Taiwan and counter China.”
The demonstration was organized by a coalition of pro-Taiwanese independence groups, including the Alliance of Referendum for Taiwan, the Free Taiwan Party, Taiwan Radical Wings and the New Power Party’s Taichung chapter.
Cosmopolitan Culture Action Taichung director Yang Chung-li （楊宗澧） said that the CUPP’s cancelation of its events was the result of collaborative efforts of like-minded pro-independence groups, which have always set aside their differences to unite in the face of Chinese oppression.
Democratic Progressive Party Taichung City Councilor Huang Shou-ta （黃守達）, who attended the demonstration on behalf of the party’s Taichung City Council caucus, said that the caucus is facing several battles regarding threats posed by China.
These include calls by several mayors and county commissioners to establish free-trade zones, which critics have said could result in Chinese capital gaining control of domestic markets and companies, he said.
The caucus would ask Taichung Mayor Lu Shoiw-yen （盧秀燕） to present a report on her stance on the issue at the city council, he added.
Additional reporting by CNA
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
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