Social Movements

Questions After Residential Eviction Near Songshan Airport

The demolition last week of the home of Guo Tai-Song, the head of the Songshan Airport Forced Eviction Self-Help Organization, has raised questions for some. However, despite the demolition occurring in the middle of winter, as compared to other cases of forced residential eviction cases in urban areas, the case has received less attention from Taiwanese activists...

Arrest Of Umbrella Movement Activists Is A Another Sign Of Political Repression

The arrest of leading Umbrella Movement figure Joshua Wong in Hong Kong, alongside other Umbrella Movement activists, probably surprises few. In particular, while Wong is currently out on bail from a six month jail sentence related to the Umbrella Movement, Wong was sent back to jail on a second set of charges, regarding Wong being held responsible for failing to comply with a police order to clear the Mong Kok encampment in Mong Kok...

Aesthetics And Politics In Demonstrations Against Labor Law Changes

Although it may have failed in preventing the changes from passing in the end, demonstrations against the Tsai administration's changes to the Labor Standards Act developed a unique visual language. Namely, in the past few years, a sign of the “maturity” of any social movement in Taiwan is that movement developing a unique visual language of its own. We might examine the characteristics of protest art during demonstrations against the Labor Standards Act, then...

A Coming Storm After The Passage Of Labor Law Changes?

With the passage of the Tsai administration’s planned changes to the Labor Standards Act this morning, it seems that organized labor, Taiwanese youth activists, and Third Force parties have suffered a defeat. But this may return to the present challenge of Taiwanese politics—to break with the DPP in a manner which advances the progressive politics which the DPP no longer is the standard bearer of...

As Protests Continue, Why Is The DPP So Intent On Passing Labor Law Changes, Anyway?

The camp-out against the Tsai administration’s planned changes to the Labor Standards Act continues into its second day, with it being anticipated that the changes will see their third reading today within the Legislative Yuan. At this juncture, it may be useful to examine why exactly the DPP is so intent on passing through changes to the Labor Standards Act...

Camp-Out Against Labor Law Begins, Attempts Made To Storm City Streets

Protests against the Tsai administration’s planned changes to the Labor Standards Act continues. Today saw the start of a weeklong camp-out outside the Legislative Yuan in order to demonstrate the planned changes, as well as a dramatic action by students intended to escalate events, with attempts to block Zhongshan South Road, Beiping North Road, Civic Boulevard, and other roads. However, the day also began with the dismantling of the New Power Party’s occupation against the planned changes by police in the early morning hours...

Migrant Workers March For Better Labor Conditions Despite Heavy Rain, Wind, And Cold

Despite heavy rain, wind, and cold, several hundred migrant workers and supportive Taiwanese activists marched today from the Ministry of Labor close to the Dadaocheng area in western Taipei, past Taipei Main Station, and towards the Presidential Office. There, migrant workers held a rally on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the barricades surrounding the Presidential Office...