111 K.O.! 150,000 Filled Liberty Square in a Non-Partisan Rally to Defend Judicial Justice
On January 11th, also known as the Judicial Day, the Taiwan People's Party held a rally titled "K.O.! Defend Judicial Justice" at Liberty Square. The rally attracted over 150,000 supporters, with more than 150,000 viewers watching online. Taiwan People's Party Acting Chairman Huang Kuo-chang, Secretary-General Vincent Chou, the party’s legislative caucus, public servants, and non-partisan individuals concerned with judicial justice gathered to condemn judicial injustice and express public outrage against the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and President Lai Ching-te. Huang Kuo-chang stated, "We hope to make ourselves loud and clear, President Lai Ching-te, we are not afraid. Today is the day we declare war on the DPP's dictatorial regime."
Starting at noon, a stage was set up for citizens to voice their concerns against Taiwan’s judicial maelstrom which saw participation from both young and middle-aged citizens. Some supporters orchestrated a street theater skit "Injustice in the Judiciary", portraying the judicial unfairness faced by former Chairman Ko Wen-je. At 2:00 PM, the rally officially began, with supporters shouting, "Reject Green Authoritarianism, Restore Judicial Justice" and "DPP, Stop Abusing Your Power," denouncing injustice and oppression.
Huang Kuo-chang urged everyone to remember this day, as it will leave a lasting mark on Taiwan’s democratic history. He recalled that former President Tsai Ing-wen had apologized to the people before taking office and promised to amend the Assembly and Parade Act. However, the DPP failed to fulfill that promise once in power. Huang stated that the DPP had become the very thing they once despised, now embracing authoritarianism and weaponizing the judicial system for political persecution. Huang promised that in the future, the Taiwan People's Party would stand at the forefront in the pursuit of judicial independence, fighting alongside the people to reclaim Taiwan’s democracy and rule of law.
In addition, Ko Wen-je's wife, Peggy Chen, and his sister, Ko Mei-lan, took the stage to express their gratitude to the supporters and called for justice and fairness in the judiciary. Other public servants from the Taiwan People’s Party, including Hsinchu City Acting Mayor Andy Chiu, Legislator Lin Kuo-chen, Chen Gau-tzu, Chang Chih-kai, Huang Shan-shan, Lin Yi-chun, Wu Chun-cheng, and Jenny Mai, also showed their support.
In addition, founding members of the DPP, Hsu Kuo-tai and Lin Cheng-chieh, also criticized the current government as despicable and detestable. Other non-partisan and cross-sector representatives also spoke, including Dr. Su Wei-shuo, Dr. Shen Cheng-nan, key opinion leader Chen Zhi-han, Ma Ying-jeou Foundation Executive Director Hsiao Hsu-chen, Yunlin County Magistrate Chang Li-shan, and New Taipei City Councilors Jimmy Chen and his father Chen Ming-yi, and Wang Yu-wen, who was prosecuted for a minor charge related to the Hsinchu City Mayor Gao Hong-an case. Additionally, 21 legislators from the Kuomintang and non-partisan groups attended to support the restoration of judicial justice.
During the rally, many attendees raised masks of Ko Wen-je and roared, 'Reject Green Authoritarianism, Restore Judicial Justice,' 'Green Terrorism, Unjust Imprisonment and Prosecution,' and 'Reject Dictatorship, Bring Back Human Rights,' condemning the 'green terror' that unjustly imprisoned Ko Wen-je while asserting that many others like him are at risk. Taiwan People's Party public officials and staff also expressed their gratitude to those who were unable to enter the venue and reaffirmed that the path to reform will not end here.