The Original Intention of Pro Bono Lawyers: Becoming a Backing for Demonstrating Crowds—An Interview with Attorney Lo Wan-ting

I was at the scene on the day the clash broke out at the Executive Yuan. Seeing so many students with bloodied heads, screaming and crying, being thrown out one by one, I couldn't think much at the moment. All I knew was that I had to save them, protect them, and hold them in my arms to keep them safe. At the conflict scene, the police were beating people even in front of lawyers. At that moment, I felt deeply saddened and helpless, feeling that what I could do was simply too little. Living in a democratic country, we should not allow state violence to occur.

Even on the streets, I am a lawyer

Being a social movement lawyer is a path of no return. There is a lot that needs to be done, and it is exhausting, but what you learn and gain is often beyond expectation. I feel honored as a lawyer to be able to use my professional expertise to help those in need.

You can lose your bag, but don't lose the card

During the March 18 Movement, I discovered inside the legislative chamber that everyone was holding a small card detailing precautions upon arrest, and all students could fluently recite the JRF hotline. In addition to providing the information needed by supporters, the JRF also coordinated and organized pro bono lawyers, enabling lawyers to communicate with each other and clearly understand the information needing assistance.

For a voice to be heard, it is absolutely impossible for a single person to do it alone. The JRF played a vital role in this movement, gathering the voices of many to tell the general public that the government's actions were problematic, and prompting more citizens to seriously ponder the severity of state violence. If we fail to investigate and hold accountable state violence, the same tragedies will recur cyclically. We hope the JRF will continue its efforts, stepping forward to severely condemn and accuse state violence so that such tragedies will never happen again.

Since the establishment of the pro bono lawyer platform, it has successively experienced many protest events encountering state violence, such as the March 24 Executive Yuan conflict and the April 28 anti-nuclear occupation of Chunghsiao West Road. We have made some efforts regarding these events:

Answering the call of hundreds, 400 lawyers step forward

As soon as the call for pro bono lawyers was issued, lawyers responded one after another, providing 24-hour on-call standby, taking shifts inside the legislative chamber, or giving short speeches outside the venue to provide substantive legal aid. To date, a total of over 430 lawyers have joined the March 18 Pro Bono Lawyers Group.

24-hour police escort and interrogation hotline, we are always here

During the occupation movement, the JRF also launched a 24-hour police escort and interrogation hotline, a pro bono lawyers' Facebook platform, and a LINE online platform, successfully connecting the operation and communication both inside and outside the entire pro bono lawyers group.

Assisting 250 cases, we keep our promises

Following the March 18 occupation of the Legislative Yuan, there were successive events such as the March 24 Executive Yuan conflict and the April 28 anti-nuclear occupation of Chunghsiao West Road. The pro bono lawyers group has currently assisted about 250 citizens facing investigation and prosecution by prosecutors and police, or pursued cases involving state violence such as police abuse of power.

Regarding the future, we plan to…

• Strengthen the pro bono lawyers group platform

  The pro bono lawyer platform handles administrative matters for hundreds of lawyers and litigants' lawsuits, including organizing lawyer group meetings, photocopying case files, tracking case progress, collecting legal materials, screening video materials, and holding court observations. As the number of cases continues to grow, we hope to further strengthen the operation of the pro bono lawyer platform in the future.

• Hold touring lectures

  The reason why the judiciary has become a henchman for those abusing power to purge dissenters is precisely due to the lack of widespread legal concepts. We plan to collaborate with volunteers to hold 20 touring lectures within a year to popularize legal concepts.

• Lawyer empowerment

  Compile lawyers' valuable experiences in police escort, interrogation, and litigation during social movements into written publications, coupled with holding lawyer empowerment training sessions, inviting experienced lawyers to participate in seminars, enabling more lawyers to get involved, and safeguarding clients' basic rights in litigation.

• Expand volunteer participation

  Recruit volunteers to participate in the pro bono lawyers group platform, making the operation of the platform more proactive and injecting more vitality into future legal public interest practices.

We need your donation!

Since March 18, protest events have emerged endlessly. What is gratifying is the awakening of civic consciousness, but what is terrible is that those in power fear this powerful momentum driving change and progress. We will never allow the judiciary to degenerate into a tool for those in power to manufacture fear.

On this path of realizing justice, we need your support and assistance. We believe that faint lights will eventually gather into a torch. Please support the JRF Pro Bono Lawyer Platform.