這篇文章不討論政府的條約。這就是我眼中的被學生主辦抗議簡述。身為一個外國人我得分享這件事。
This post isn't about the contentious pact between Taiwan and China. It's rather parochial in outlook - it focuses mainly on how the students pulled off a strike that left me impressed.
If you don't know what I am talking about, read this.
The strike was primarily organized by students coming from various universities across the country. Marked by elements of ingenuity, technical innovation and efficiency, it was the most evolved form of strike I have ever seen or heard of.
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| Makeshift tents and the protesters |
Inside the gates of Legislative Yuan (LY) was a makeshift tent with medical assistance for the needy. For sake of solidarity, passers-by were requested not to take pics of the place. There was another stall on 濟南路一段 (Jinan Rd) offering counselling and other services to those in need of help with psychological problems. At the end was a stall being set up to provide information and services for getting to Taipei from other cities in the country.
On the left at the entrance of Qingdao East Rd was a stall where students could get help with their school assignments and homework. There was a board listing the subjects one could help with.
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| Top: Placards advertising the availability of free showers. Center: 課輔教室 (Supplementary lesson teaching unit) Bottom: Massage for the needy (not sure if it was free) |
There were stages set up for people to give speeches and screens erected for projecting videos. Most of the space on the road was occupied by the protesters who peacefully kept on with their usual chores. The big screens often played a live telecast of the happenings inside Legislative Yuan (LY) using simple P2P mobile apps.
The content played on smaller screens was a miscellany of movies related to historic revolutions, short films expounding terms like democracy and freedom, documentaries on past cover-ups of government or on ancient heroes and so on.
At one of the intersections a stall was set up to charge cell phone batteries. A person who wanted to get his phone charged was given a token number to serve as a unique identity. Huddled in a corner was a bunch of routers. One of the students informed me that they had come from Japan as a token of appreciation after Taiwan offered them help when it was hit by Tsunami.
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| Top: A FarEastZone Vehicle with outfitted with routers to make wifi available in the area. Bottom: The tech team hidden in a nook. |
The protest was not getting the much needed exposure and in some cases was shown in a bad light. A group of protesters then came up with a website of their own - 4am.tw where they put forth their point of view replete with photos, videos and links to other articles.
Pylons and ribbons demarcated the area to be used by pedestrians. At the periphery of the protest area volunteers made sure that the traffic was diverted smoothly. The people liaised with a few hotels who offered free showers to the people staying there. The location was kept undisclosed to the public.
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| Top: Students protesting Middle: Students hanging out Bottom: Free coffee for everyone |
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| Trash cans for each type of garbage. Cleanliness was one thing NOT ignored during the whole protest |
The whole area was abuzz with various kinds of activities and had buoyancy similar to that of a fest. People unleashed their creativity on posters, tee-shirts, banners, little crafts and simple contraptions.
Jinan Rd primarily served stage-shows, live performances and other art related events in the backdrop of the protest. There were coffee stalls serving free coffee. This road had a lesser footfall than Qingdao East Rd.
I can go on describing the multitude of activities that went on there and how well the whole thing was organized. As much as I was supporting their cause, I also had my own set of reasons to spend most of my time there. The place had a lot of things that kept me ticking - constant buzz, a warm presence of people around, all the basic means to get by and a concourse indulging in expression of their selves in various forms. I loved talking to the people there, and they loved talking to me. My newfound room was dull and depressing. I haven't anyway ever spent a lot of time indoors.
On my second last visit to the place I saw a woman sitting on a bootstrapped bedding with her son. While talking to me she told me she was a teacher in Taichung, and that she used to come every weekend to Taipei to support the students. Everyone in her school had been discouraged from supporting the protest but she had openly stepped forward and made her stance clear. I asked whether her little son knew about what was going on. She replied, "He knows. He is witnessing history."
That night I was happily given a plastic mattress and a thin blanket after I told them I wanted to sleep there. I found a spot near the entrance to Qingdao East Rd under a tree. There was a bunch of girls just down the footpath who had come from Kaosiung. The protesters tried to continue the activities throughout the night but in a much quieter way. There was a big screen playing some movie a few meters away from me. A few hours into the night the volume was turned down.
I woke up at five in the morning. I wrapped my bedding and as I began to proceed to a counter to return it, a homeless woman came to me and asked me for the bedding.
A week later, the protest was called off. The event got floppy media coverage from international community but it was an unprecedented event in recent history of Taiwan. What puzzles and amazes me is that the people driving the protest had never seen any form of unrest in the country before. They haven't had any encounter with violence or chaos. Probably that's what gave this whole protest the much refreshing elements of technocratic supremacy and pacific execution.
I can go on describing the multitude of activities that went on there and how well the whole thing was organized. As much as I was supporting their cause, I also had my own set of reasons to spend most of my time there. The place had a lot of things that kept me ticking - constant buzz, a warm presence of people around, all the basic means to get by and a concourse indulging in expression of their selves in various forms. I loved talking to the people there, and they loved talking to me. My newfound room was dull and depressing. I haven't anyway ever spent a lot of time indoors.
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| Some of the posters covering the walls |
That night I was happily given a plastic mattress and a thin blanket after I told them I wanted to sleep there. I found a spot near the entrance to Qingdao East Rd under a tree. There was a bunch of girls just down the footpath who had come from Kaosiung. The protesters tried to continue the activities throughout the night but in a much quieter way. There was a big screen playing some movie a few meters away from me. A few hours into the night the volume was turned down.
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| Top: People drying their clothes in the open. Bottom: One of the makeshift shops having the wherewithal for overnight stays |
I woke up at five in the morning. I wrapped my bedding and as I began to proceed to a counter to return it, a homeless woman came to me and asked me for the bedding.
A week later, the protest was called off. The event got floppy media coverage from international community but it was an unprecedented event in recent history of Taiwan. What puzzles and amazes me is that the people driving the protest had never seen any form of unrest in the country before. They haven't had any encounter with violence or chaos. Probably that's what gave this whole protest the much refreshing elements of technocratic supremacy and pacific execution.
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