Translated Action Statement from the "Wild Strawberry Movement"

The student movement to revise the Assembly and Parade Law has been formally renamed the "Wild Strawberry Movement", a reference to both the "Wild Lily Student Movement" of 1990 (demanding democratic reforms to provide for the direct election of the president and all legislators), as well as the popular term for the generation born in the 1980s ("the strawberry generation" - stereotyped as self-absorbed, and weak).

The students have issued a formal statement, which I have translated below (again feel free to pass it around). The original statement can be found on the official site for the movement.

“野草莓運動”行動聲明
Action Statement from the "Wild Strawberry Movement"

運動緣起
我們是一群憂心臺灣混亂現況與未來發展的大學教授、學生、文化工作者和市民。我們看到了近日來警察不當執法、侵害言論自由，導致合法集會的民眾受傷等事件。我們驚覺事態嚴重 —這已經不是維安有否過當的技術問題、更不只是政黨認同選擇的問題，而是暴力化的國家公權，對市民社會的嚴重挑釁和侵犯。我們為此感到擔憂，因此從 11/06上午11點開始，聚集在行政院門口抗議。我們在11/07下午四點遭到警方驅離，我們現在改聚集在中正紀念堂，並發起長期抗戰。

Movement Origins
We are a group of university professors, students, cultural workers, and citizens who are concerned about Taiwan's current state of disorder and future development. Over the past few days, we have seen numerous instances of police overreaction and suppression, which have caused injury to citizens exercising their right to free speech. Through reports in the media, we have come to realize the seriousness of the current situation. It is no longer a technical question of excessive law enforcement tactics, nor is it simply a partisan issue between supporters of various political parties. This is a proliferation of state sponsored violence that is challenging and attacking civil society. Our concern over this state of affairs led us to peacefully protest at the gates of the Executive Yuan, beginning at 11AM on November 6. At 4PM on November 7, we were dispersed by the police. We have since regrouped at Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall , where we plan to engage in a long term struggle.

反對警方執法過當、侵犯人權與集遊惡法
試舉出近日警方的不當行為：淨空高速公路車道。禁止民眾在公共場合舉國旗。禁止民眾在公共場所說「台灣不是中國的」。沒收人民財物，如旗幟、標語。民眾在圓山附近手持DV拍攝，卻被警方違反行政程序強行帶回警局。民眾想要施放印有「黑心」圖樣的氣球被警方制止。民眾騎機車懸掛支持西藏獨立的「雪山獅子旗」，卻被警方制止且強行帶回警局。上揚唱片行事件等。上述個案，警方以違反集會遊行法、社會秩序維護法、警察職權行使法為由對人民行使的強制行動，已經嚴重的侵犯憲法、民法等上位法規對於人民基本自由、財產權利的保障。

Oppose Police Overreaction and the Suppression of Human Rights by the Unconstitutional Assembly and Parade Law
Inappropriate acts taken by police in recent days include the following: Forcibly shutting down major highways. Prohibiting citizens from waving the national flag in public. Prohibiting citizens from stating that "Taiwan does not belong to China" in public. Confiscating the personal property of citizens, such as flags and signs with slogans. Forcibly detaining citizens filming areas near the Grand Hotel with handheld camcorders, without following due process. Preventing citizens from flying balloons protesting toxic Chinese food products. Forcibly detaining citizens on a moped carrying a Tibetan flag. Ordering the closure of a music store playing Taiwanese music. The police have tried to justify these repressive actions by claiming violations of the Assembly and Parade Law, the Social Order Maintenance Law, and invoking the Regulations on Police Duties, while ignoring the fact that their actions are in violation of the Constitution, Civil Law, and other higher level laws guaranteeing the peoples' free speech and property rights.

言論與人身自由的重要性
我們深信自由的重要。試想，假使當年政府動員警力驅散凱達格蘭夜市、驅散紅衫軍，那麼台灣的公民就沒有機會聽取社會上不同的意見；正是因為他們沒有被驅散，不同的聲音才得以被聽見。人只有曝露在各種不同的意見中，才能學習判斷意見的優劣，這是公民社會不可或缺的條件，也說明了言論自由為甚麼可貴。

On the Importance of Personal Freedom
We believe in the importance of freedom. Imagine for a moment what would have resulted had the government ordered the police to crack down on the 2007 Red Shirt demonstration in front of the Presidential Office. The citizens of Taiwan would not have had the opportunity to listen to other opinions. It was only because they were not dispersed that different voices could be heard. Only by being exposed to numerous different viewpoints, can we learn how to determine for ourselves the quality of different opinions. This is an essential requirement for a functioning civil society, and illustrates the importance of free speech.

正因自由如此可貴，憲法明文保障此項自由。位階較低的法律，應該輔助憲法，將之具體實現並定其界限。然而，威權時代、戒嚴時期遺留下來的集會遊行法，卻嚴重危害言論自由。它的許可制預設人民的集會遊行會違法；它的禁制區寬免政府機關於民意的挑戰；它授予警察過大的裁量權，竟使警察執法時越俎而代法官之庖。

It is because free speech is so important that its protection is enshrined in the Constitution. Other laws must support the Constitution, facilitating its execution and specifying its limits. Despite this, the Assembly and Parade Law - left over from the authoritarian days of martial law, gravely damages the right to free speech. By requiring protesting citizens to acquire a permit for a lawful demonstration, rather than simply notifying the government beforehand, it allows protests to be declared illegal before they even take place. Its excessive provisions for restricted areas off limits to protesters, allows governmental organs to insulate themselves from being challenged by public opinion. By granting the police excessive powers, it allows the police to take the place of judges in a court of law.

具體訴求
Concrete Demands

修改集會遊行法
因此，對於集會遊行法我們有以下幾點具體建議：(1)許可制改為報備制。政府不應事前審查，預設人民的集會遊行會違法；(2)檢討禁制區之規定。集會遊行是手無寸鐵、無權無勢者陳情抗議的方法，現行的禁制區規定卻不容人民挑戰行政機關；(3)規定警察執法的界線。避免警察無限上綱、恣意妄為；(4)取消刑罰，改採行政罰。就同樣的行為而言，集會遊行法規定的罰則比其他法律苛重，違反比例原則。

Amend the Assembly and Parade Law
We provide the following suggestions for revising the Assembly and Parade Law: (1) Change the current permit system to a notification system. The government has no right to examine the peoples' motivations beforehand, and declare unfavorable demonstrations to be illegal before they even take place; (2) Reexamine the current provisions for restricted areas. Demonstrations and marches allow unarmed citizens without any other means to make their grievances known and petition for redress. The current restricted areas do not allow the people to challenge governmental agencies; (3) Clarify permissible actions by the police in enforcing the law. Do not grant a blank check for the police to exercise whatever methods they see fit; (4) Make the new law an administrative law, rather then penal law. Compared to other laws, the current Assembly and Parade Law calls for heavier punishment for the same illegal actions, violating the principle of proportionality.

處分失職警務人員
有關近日人民與警察的衝突頻傳，我們感到相當心痛。也有人質問我們為什麼不站出來譴責群眾暴力。對此，我們做出以下的回應：我們堅決守護、支持人民表達意見的權利，也堅決反對任何暴力的手段，不論暴力行為來自於人民或者警方。我們從近日發生的許多事件看到，人民的暴力可以由法律來規範，警政單位的公權力卻可能濫用，並擴張成無所節制的暴力，沒有受到應有的約束。因此，我們譴責政府與警方擴大解釋法律、不當使用暴力的手段來壓制人民合法表達意見的自由；調查處分相關失職警務人員；警務、國安長官必須下台負責。

Punish Police Personnel Engaging in Inappropriate Behavior
The recent clashes between the people and the police have left us with a great sense of sorrow. We have been asked why we have not stood out to condemn violent mob behavior. To this, we provide the following response: We are determined to protect and support the people in freely expressing their opinions, and condemn any and all acts of violence, be they from the people or the police. From the many events of the past few days, we have seen that while violent acts on the part of the people can be regulated by law, law enforcement agencies can also abuse their power to justify unlimited brutality without any appropriate restriction or regulation. It is because of this that we condemn the government and the police for increasingly ignoring the law, and for inappropriate use of force to violently suppress the rights of the people to freely express their views. We request that a full investigation be carried out to identify police officers who abused their authority, and that appropriate punitive measures be taken. Additionally, the directors of the police and national security agencies who are ultimately responsible must step down.

馬英九總統道歉
警察執行強制行為時代表的是國家暴力，國家暴力的使用必須以維護人民生命、自由、財產權利為最高優先，不可不慎。但警察單位終究只是執行命令的機器，政府以及執政黨的立場和命令，直接影響一線員警如何執行勤務。我們譴責馬英九政府踐踏我國民主自由的基本立國精神，必須道歉。

President Ma must Apologize
The use of force by police is a symbol of state sponsored violence, and should only be used when absolutely necessary to safeguard the rights of the people to life, liberty, and property. Its use should never be employed without the utmost care. However, police agencies are only passive mechanisms that execute the orders issued to them. The positions and directives of the government, as well as the ruling party, will directly impact how rank and file police officers go about their duties. We condemn the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou for trampling on the spirit of freedom and democracy that are fundamental to the foundation of our nation, and demand that he apologize.

發起公民不服從運動
我們是以學生為主體發起的公民不服從運動。當政府依照違憲的集遊法行使法律或者不當解釋法律時，後續的公權力行使是缺乏正當性的，對於缺乏正當性的公權力，公民有不服從的權利。我們希望所有認同我們訴求的公民、市民來一起參與這場運動，共同要求「馬英九總統和行政院長劉兆玄必須公開向國人道歉。」「警政署長王卓鈞、國安局長蔡朝明，應立刻下臺。」「立法院立即修改限縮人民權利的『集會遊行法』」。

Creating a movement of Civil DisobedienceWe are a movement of civil disobedience initiated by students, and with students as our core. When the government invokes the unconstitutional Assembly and Parade Law, or abuses lawful governmental authority, subsequent governmental actions are illegitimate. The people have a right to refuse to obey illegitimate governmental actions. We hope that all people who agree with our statement will join us in this movement to demand that President Ma Ying-jeou and Premier Liu Chao-shiuan apologize to all citizens; that National Police Agency Director-General Wang Cho-chiun and National Security Bureau Director Tsai Chao-ming step down; and that the Legislative Yuan immediately amend the Assembly and Parade Law so that it does not threaten the rights of the people.

Tags: [Taiwan], [Protest], [野草莓].