President Ma, Stop Turning a Blind Eye! The Problem Is Not Just Violence but Violent Police: Civil Groups Form the Legal Team Against Police Brutality

Civilian groups and the "Legal Team Against Police Brutality" held a press conference on Thursday, November 20, in front of Liberty Square, titled "President Ma, Stop Turning a Blind Eye! The Problem Is Not Just Violence but Violent Police."

Following their action on November 5—where civilian groups and independent citizens went to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office to file a complaint against Lee Han-ching, Chief of the Beitou Precinct, for unlawfully entering Sunrise Records, suspected illegal search, and coercion—these groups launched a second wave of action in collaboration with the Taipei Bar Association and the Judicial Reform Foundation to form the "Legal Team Against Police Brutality," comprising over 20 attorneys.

Huang Jia-lu, Chief of the Songshan Precinct, Becomes a Defendant in Multiple Cases

Following interviews and evidence gathering by members of the legal team, the attorneys will, starting today, serve as defense counsel for identified and unidentified victims who suffered attacks by violent police, and will file private prosecutions or criminal complaints with the courts. In addition to Beitou Precinct Chief Lee Han-ching, Songshan Precinct Chief Huang Jia-lu and several police officers from the Zhongshan Precinct are among this wave of defendants.

The Judicial Reform Foundation and the legal team hope that through this second wave of legal actions, more victimized citizens who suffered police attacks during Chen Yunlin's visit to Taiwan but were afraid to file charges or lacked access to remedies will actively contact the legal team. The civilian organizations do not rule out launching a third wave of litigation after accumulating more individual cases.

Several victims appeared in person today at Liberty Square to share their accounts, including: (1) Ms. Huang and Ms. Chiang, who were unreasonably suppressed by police and riot units made up of alternative service conscripts, resulting in multiple injuries; (2) NTU graduate student Chiang, who was dragged into a police shield wall and beaten with police batons while completely unarmed and engaging in no aggressive actions; (3) documentary director Ms. Chen, who refused to show her ID and was forcibly pushed into a police car, sustaining injuries; (4) three netizens on Zhongshan North Road, whose Snow Lion flag was unlawfully seized by police, and who were injured and unlawfully detained; and (5) Manager Chao, a representative of Sunrise Records, who attended to express views on police law enforcement (see attached table for details).

500 Scholars Sign Petition Demanding Relevant Authorities Severely Punish Police Overreach

Members of civilian groups and the "Legal Team Against Police Brutality" stated that choosing to hold the press conference at Liberty Square demonstrates our support for the spirit of the Wild Strawberries Movement. Currently, over 500 scholars have signed a petition for the Wild Strawberries Movement, demanding that relevant authorities apologize and severely punish police officers who overstepped their authority during enforcement. The legal team's approach of filing lawsuits against violent police is a concrete manifestation echoing the students' demands.

Members of the legal team, jointly formed by the Taipei Bar Association and the JRF, arrived to show their support. They criticized National Police Agency Director-General Wang Cho-chun for merely issuing a "verbal correction" to Beitou Precinct Chief Lee Han-ching—whose severe overreach was obvious, and who even publicly welcomed lawsuits in the media—while completely turning a blind eye to Lee's grave and flagrant illegal and improper conduct of leading police into Sunrise Records! Will President Ma Ying-jeou continue to turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to human rights violations laid out so clearly before him? With such an attitude, how can the general public be convinced?

Victims of Police Violence

No.	Name	Incident Details	Litigation Status
1	Sunrise Records	On the evening of November 4, 2008, Lee Han-ching, Chief of the Taipei City Police Department Beitou Precinct, was serving as the on-site security commander for a banquet between ARATS Chairman Chen Yunlin and Kuomintang Honorary Chairman Lien Chan at the Ambassador Hotel on Zhongshan North Road in Taipei City. Without cause, without applying for a search warrant from the competent court, and acting outside the law, he entered Sunrise Records located at the intersection of Zhongshan North Road and Minsheng East Road, forcibly searched the company's broadcasting equipment, demanded the suspension of the company's music playback, and—even without any legal basis—ordered the police officers on site to use violence and intimidation to force the company to pull down its rolling metal door.	Report Filed
2	Ms. Huang, Ms. Tseng	Around 9:30 p.m. on November 5, 2008, the two individuals were sitting and chatting in the arcade diagonally opposite the side entrance of the Grand Formosa Regent Taipei, intending to catch a glimpse of Chen Yunlin in person. Unexpectedly, at around 10:30 p.m. on the same day, police established a blockade around the exits near No. 45, Section 2, Zhongshan North Road. The troops used shields and batons to push, squeeze, and jab the two individuals, pinning them against the boutique's wall, leaving the private prosecutors unable to move for at least two minutes, and thereby causing injuries including finger fractures, head contusions, and multiple abrasions and lacerations to the private prosecutors.	Private Prosecution
3	Student Chiang	On November 6, 2008, Student Chiang and other citizens went outside the Grand Formosa Regent Taipei to observe spontaneous civilian protest activities. They were unlawfully subjected to violence by police officers and alternative military service draftees, who used weapons such as batons and shields to push and strike them, and kicked him while he had fallen to the ground, causing him to suffer irregular scalp lacerations, skin abrasions on the left knee and left ankle, skin abrasions and bruises on the right shoulder, and bruises on the right arm.	Private Prosecution
4	Ms. Chen	Having committed no violation of the law, at around 11:00 a.m. on November 4, 2008 (at which time Chen Yunlin had already departed the hotel by car at approximately 10:57), Ms. Chen was outside the main building of the Grand Hotel when police blocked her path, prevented her from filming, and demanded she show her identification. When she refused, police formed a human wall to block her, pushed her toward a police car, pinned her against the rear trunk of the police car, and forcefully shoved her inside. Inside the vehicle, police officers kept a tight grip on her arms until arriving at the Yuanshan Police Station under the jurisdiction of the Zhongshan Precinct, where she was then carried into the police station by four officers "like a sacrificial pig." The process caused the complainant to sustain multiple bruises (1 cm on the inner left hand, 6 cm on the back of the right forearm), a 2 cm abrasion on the back of the right elbow, and 6 cm of subcutaneous petechial bleeding on the back of the left elbow.	Complaint Filed
5	Three Netizens	On November 3, 2008, three netizens were strolling along Zhongshan North Road distributing flyers advocating freedom of speech. However, they were surrounded by a police human wall, their movements were physically restrained, and they were barred from peacefully expressing their opinions. Police unlawfully snatched the Snow Lion flag from their hands, and even claimed that holding the flag violated regulations, injuring one of them in the process. Ultimately, the police even unlawfully detained the three individuals at the Security Police Corps, depriving them of their personal liberty through illegal means.	Private Prosecution