EDITORIAL: Inclusivity is not a token gesture

A police raid on a gay bar in Taipei’s Ximending (西門町) area one week ago prompted a protest by civil groups and members of the LGBTQ community, who characterized the raid as excessively forceful and demanded that police apologize and stop stigmatizing LGBTQ culture.

Police from the Wanhua Precinct raided the bar, Commander D, after obtaining a search warrant following complaints that the venue might be contravening public decency laws. Police said they found people without clothing and seized used condoms, taking 51 people to the police station for questioning and referring the bar’s owner to prosecutors.

The legality of the raid itself is not the issue. Police had obtained a warrant, and authorities have a legitimate responsibility to investigate suspected contraventions of the law. What is far more difficult to justify is how the raid was carried out.

People at the scene said officers ordered them to squat or kneel, prevented them from using their phones and initially refused to let some people put their clothes back on. One person taken in for questioning said they were held for more than six hours after being accused of breaking public decency laws, having removed their shirt shortly before police arrived because the bar was crowded and hot.

There were also allegations that police searched personal belongings and treated large numbers of patrons as suspects. One officer was recorded asking a disabled customer in a restroom how disabled people “manage to have sex in there.”

Police have disputed some of these allegations and said the orders were necessary to secure the premises, prevent interference with the investigation and preserve evidence. However, after reviewing body camera footage, the Taipei City Police Department found that four officers had used inappropriate or discriminatory language.

The lead investigator was disciplined for failing to stop the remarks, while the Wanhua Precinct chief was disciplined for inadequate supervision. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) apologized to those affected and said police discipline would be bolstered, while emphasizing that everyone, regardless of gender, sexual orientation or identity, should be treated equally.

Those measures are necessary, but they do not answer the deeper concerns raised by the operation.

A search warrant gives police legal authority to enter and search a specified premises. It should not, by itself, give officers unlimited discretion over how they treat the people inside and their property.

The alleged offenses were not violent crimes or an immediate threat to public safety. If the bar or its customers contravened public decency laws, they should be dealt with according to the law. However, law enforcement must still be proportionate to the conduct being investigated.

There is also the broader question about how such operations are planned and supervised. The government should review what circumstances warrant a forceful raid and how officers are expected to execute search warrants under a variety of circumstances. Sensitivity and diversity training should also be improved, particularly when officers are dealing with communities that have historically faced discrimination and stigma.

The Taiwan Alliance to Promote Civil Partnership Rights and other groups said the incident was not simply a matter of individual officers misspeaking or a single instance of excessive enforcement. They described it as the “resurfacing of long-standing homophobia, discrimination and abuse of power” within the police system.

Taiwan became the first in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage in 2019 and has developed a reputation as one of the region’s most LGBTQ-friendly societies. Taipei is preparing to host its annual Pride event on Oct. 31, the largest in East Asia and one that attracts visitors from across the region.

For a community that has long been a target of discrimination and oppression, an aggressive police operation at an LGBTQ venue carries much deeper implications than a few inappropriate remarks. It can reinforce the perception that LGBTQ spaces are inherently suspicious or depraved, and that people who enter them need not be treated with dignity when the state exercises its authority.

Penalizing the officers involved is not enough. Beyond providing the public with a clear account of what happened and explaining the legal basis for the treatment of those detained, the government and police department should outline concrete measures to ensure that misconduct like this does not happen again — and they should do so before the Pride event, rather than simply waiting for the controversy to fade.

The government should ensure that all residents, regardless of their identity, feel safe, respected and equally protected under the law — that is what defines an inclusive city.