Week 1 - 太陽花學運/服貿協議

“Sunflower student movement” in Taiwan: Taiwanese students seek peaceful solution in the protest over China trade pact

By Ichiachiu  |  Posted March 21, 2014  |  Taipei

In Taiwan, a new student movement has come into formation. As the occupation of the Legislative Yuan entered its third day, students from all around the island came to give their support. It is estimated that more than thirty thousand students are involved in the demonstration.

On this Friday morning (3/21), students started to deliver sunflowers, which are viewed as the emblem of the movement against the dark and invalid moves by the government.

Despite of the increasing police force mobilized, students insisted in non-violent ways in the protest. Cards written with blessings are seen on the barriers set to stop more protesters from joining. On Friday morning, a police, with a mask to protect the identity, stepped out to talk with the crowds, encouraging them to persist.

Earlier on this Tuesday (3/18), to oppose the forcing through the China trade pact by the KMT, the ruling party led by President Ma Ying-jeou, more than a hundred students burst into the Legislative Yuan and started the first occupation of the Assembly Hall. Many accused the government of disregarding the fact that more than 70% of the Taiwanese hopes to have the trade pact (The Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement) scrutinized with deliberation and thus consider such action a disrespect to the principles of democracy.

At six on Friday, three demands are issued by Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆), a National Taiwan University student and one of the main leaders of the protest. He insisted that President Ma Ying-jeou and legislative speaker Wang Jin-pyng should come to have a face-to-face response with the protestors. He also urges the president to withdraw the pact back and start a cross-strait supervision law.

For now far no response is received from the president, Lin now declare there will be further action for the protest. He demands people to have a sit-in in front of the KMP’s headquarters and its branches.

http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1110479

Structure of the lead :

WHO - Students from all around the island

WHEN - March 18

WHAT - Students protested against the agreement of the trade pact.

WHY - The movement against the dark and invalid moves by the government.

WHERE -Legislative Yuan

HOW - not given

Keywords : 

1. emblem (n.) 象徵
2. invalid (a.) 無效的 ; 無用的
3. mobilize (v.) 動員
4. KMT 中國國民黨
5. disregard (v.) 不理會 ； 忽視
6. trade pact 貿易條約
7. scrutinize (v.) 詳細檢查
8. deliberation (n.) 審議
9. legislative (a.) 立法的
10. withdraw (v.) 撤回
11. cross-strait supervision law 兩岸監督法
12. sit-in (n.) 靜坐抗議
13. branch (n.) 分局