妙子的故鄉翦影

自由之家發佈呼籲，要求臺灣政府成立獨立調查委員會，調查近日警民衝突的真相，請大家立刻廣為傳播。謝謝！

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美國自由之家呼籲調查台灣衝突的真相
Freedom House Calls for Inquiry into Taiwan Clashes

華盛頓 – 2008年11月20日 – 自由之家強烈呼籲台灣政府組成獨立委員會，以詳加調查在中國特使陳雲林歷史性訪台時期警察與抗議群眾之間的衝突，並且針對應當改革之處提出建議。

Washington – November 20, 2008 – Freedom House urges Taiwan’s government to create an independent commission to thoroughly investigate clashes between police and activists protesting Chinese envoy Chen Yunlin’s historic visit and recommend needed reforms.

自由之家執行長珍妮佛‧溫莎女士表示：「若能針對暴力事件 ─ 牽涉警民雙方的暴力 ─ 作出公開調查，將會顯示馬英九總統領導的新政府的確有決心要遵守民主價值強調的透明運作和社會徵信原則。」她也提到：「調查進行的方式應該要仔細審視警民兩邊各自提出的證據，並且要針對警察執勤以及處理示威抗議的相關法規，提出應當如何改革的建言。」

“A public investigation of the violence—which involved both sides—will send a critical message that the new government of President Ma Ying-jeou is interested in upholding the democratic values of transparency and accountability,” said Jennifer Windsor, Freedom House executive director. “The inquiry should examine evidence on both sides and recommend any needed reforms to police practices and the legal framework governing demonstrations.”

數百位大學生目前正在台北的自由廣場以及其他城市進行靜坐，以抗議政府處理日前活動的方式。據民眾指出，警察在陳雲林參訪期間藉由強硬手段對付各式抗議活動，包括肢體傷害、任意羈留、毀壞私人物品等等，以避免讓陳雲林親眼見到代表台灣或西藏獨立的旗誌，更避免讓他看到針對中國政府的諸多廣泛抗議。抗議群眾亦在11月6日對警察以暴力相向，在陳雲林住宿的旅館外圍投擲石塊與汽油彈。

Hundreds of university students are currently staging a sit-in in Taipei’s Freedom Square and several other cities to protest the government’s handling of the incident. During Chen’s visit, police reportedly used heavy-handed tactics—including physical assault, arbitrary detention and destruction of property—to prevent Chen from seeing symbols of Taiwanese or Tibetan independence, as well as broader demonstrations against the Chinese regime. Demonstrators also employed violence against police, throwing rocks and petrol bombs outside Chen’s hotel on November 6.

此番衝突顯示出，台灣警察需要接受有關如何規範群眾的訓練，以符合其他民主國家對於類似事件的處理標準。同樣地，抗議群眾與政治代言團體也應當展現決心，重新宣示在任何情況下皆會堅持和平抗議、避免暴力的準則。

The clashes reveal a need for police to undergo crowd control training that adheres to the standards used in other democracies. Likewise, demonstrators and political advocacy groups must recommit themselves to orderly protests that avoid violence under any circumstances.

調查委員會成立後應當仔細審視台灣集會遊行法中引起重大爭議的法令，像是限制民眾示威抗議的地點，亦要明白指出是否應該鬆綁相關法令，以確切保護言論與集會自由等公民權利。除此之外，此委員會也應針對宣稱警方選擇性辦案的說法進行調查。

The inquiry commission should examine controversial passages in Taiwan’s Assembly and Parade Law, such as restrictions on where people are allowed to demonstrate, and determine whether they need to be liberalized to protect citizens’ rights to freedom of expression and assembly. The commission should also investigate claims that police are selectively enforcing the law.

陳雲林 ─ 台灣與中國自1949年分裂以來參訪的最高層級官員 ─ 來台一事，以及近來聲押多位反對黨重要人物的司法事件，已經引發輿論諸多關切，憂心馬英九總統和他代表的國民黨會讓民主自由開倒車。

The visit by Chen, the most senior Chinese official to visit Taiwan since it split from China in 1949, and the recent arrests of several opposition party figures are raising concerns that that President Ma and his Kuomintang Party may rollback democratic freedoms.

溫莎女士表示：「馬英九政府必須重新宣示其絕對尊重集會與和平抗議自由的決心，不管活動的訴求為何。」

“The government must renew its commitment to tolerating robust freedom of assembly and peaceful protest, no matter what the cause,” said Windsor.

不論是根據自由之家針對政治權利與公民自由作出的世界自由2008年版普查，或是2008年版新聞自由中的評估分級，台灣皆屬於自由國度。

Taiwan is ranked Free in the 2008 edition of Freedom in the World, Freedom House’s survey of political rights and civil liberties, and in the 2008 version of Freedom of the Press.

若您想要了解更多關於台灣的資訊，請參考以下網頁：

世界自由2008年版：台灣
新聞自由2008年版：台灣

自由之家是支持拓展世界自由的獨立非政府組織，自1972年起即持續觀察台灣的政治權利與公民自由狀況。

For more information on Taiwan, visit:

Freedom in the World 2008: Taiwan
Freedom of the Press 2008: Taiwan

Freedom House, an independent nongovernmental organization that supports the expansion of freedom in the world, has been monitoring political rights and civil liberties in Taiwan since 1972.

Freedom matters.
Freedom House makes a difference.
www.freedomhouse.org

延伸閱讀
自由時報：美自由之家要求台灣調查警民衝突事件