Gay bar raid tests Taipei’s queer-friendly image ahead of Pride parade

Around 100 members of Taipei’s LGBTQ+ community protested over the weekend after police raided a gay bar and detained its customers, a highly unusual move given that Taiwan prides itself on its liberal image and legal support for sexual minorities.



Taiwan legalised same-sex marriage in 2019 in a first for Asia and is normally a bastion of tolerance in a region where LGBTQ+ rights are often either suppressed or outlawed.



Taipei holds its main Pride event later in October, the largest in East Asia.



Taipei police raided the Commander D gay bar in the city’s Wanhua district in the afternoon on Oct 3, taking 51 people in for questioning and arresting the bar’s owner.