Taipei throws the biggest Pride party in East Asia. Four weeks before this year’s, the city’s cops spent a Saturday afternoon raiding a gay bar.
If you’ve got flights booked for Taiwan Pride on October 31, here’s what happened, what it means for you, and whether to still go. (Spoiler: go.)
What happened
At about 4:30 pm on Saturday, October 3, officers from Taipei’s Wanhua Precinct walked into Commander D, a BDSM-themed gay bar in Ximending that’s been open for 14 years. They had a court-issued search warrant. Police say the bar had drawn 13 complaints this year, and the investigation started after a city councilor claimed in September that minors were getting in. The bar denies it and says it checks IDs.
The raid ran about five hours. There were 67 people inside, 58 customers and 9 staff. Police took 51 customers in for questioning under the Social Order Maintenance Act for public nudity and “lascivious” behavior, and the 44-year-old owner was arrested and referred to prosecutors, per Storm Media. Police said they found used condoms and people without clothes. (Five hours, 67 people, and the big haul was used condoms at a gay bar on a Saturday. Crime of the century.)
Patrons describe being told to squat, no talking, no phones, not being allowed to get dressed, and the manager handcuffed and made to kneel, according to witnesses. Police say that was about “securing the scene.” Rights groups also said a reporter came in with the police and took photos; police say the reporter just happened to be a customer. Sure.
Then the audio came out. An officer who found a disabled customer in the restroom asked him, “Disabled people can have sex too?” Police first denied anyone was humiliated. After reviewing body-cam footage, they disciplined six officers: four for inappropriate remarks, the lead investigator for not stopping them, and the precinct chief for poor supervision.
The next day, roughly 100 people marched from the Red House (the courtyard behind it is Taipei’s main gay bar strip) to the local police station. On October 5, Mayor Chiang Wan-an, who is up for re-election next month, apologized to “those affected,” ordered a review, and insisted Taipei is a gay-friendly city. A coalition of more than 50 groups, including the Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline, wants more: an independent investigation, the body-cam recordings released, and clear rules for how police treat LGBTQ+ venues.
Why it matters for queer travelers
Let’s keep this in proportion. Reuters called it a “rare” raid, and being gay in Taiwan is not what’s illegal here. Taiwan was the first place in Asia with marriage equality (2019), gave same-sex couples joint adoption rights in 2023, and has banned conversion therapy since 2018, per Equaldex.
What the police used is a public-decency rule. Article 83 of the Social Order Maintenance Act covers “wantonly exposing one’s naked body or presenting lascivious posture in a public place or publicly accessible place,” with a fine of up to NT$6,000. Police applied it to a bar. One person who was detained says they’d only taken their shirt off because the room was hot, and the lead investigator told Reuters police were “inclined not to fine” the 51.
And there are real gaps. Taiwan has no hate-crime protections, and changing your legal gender still requires surgery, per Equaldex. Local activists point out this isn’t the first time police have gone after queer spaces, and that a city selling itself as gay-friendly should act like it on more than one Saturday a year.
So should you still go to Taiwan Pride?
Yes. Nothing about this raid targets people marching in a parade, and Taipei’s mayor now has every reason to make this Pride go smoothly. Here’s the practical stuff:
- The basics: Taiwan Pride is Saturday, October 31, starting and ending at Taipei City Hall Plaza, with a northern and a southern route. This year’s theme is “Our Voices, Our Journey,” it’s run by the Taiwan Rainbow Civil Action Association, and you don’t need to register: just show up at the meeting area. Listings put the start at 2 pm, so get there by 1.
- The parade itself: Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang says it will be handled under the normal Assembly and Parade Act, and that “people of every sexual orientation should be respected.”
- Carry your passport. Officers told people at Commander D they were just “checking identities,” then held some of them for hours. Having ID on you makes any check shorter.
- Know the venue rules. Clothing-optional nights and darkrooms are a Pride-weekend staple (listings already show Ximending parties on October 30). Article 83 is the law in play, so keep that in mind before you strip down to a harness (we’re not your mother, just saying).
- If police show up: stay calm, keep your ID handy, and if you’re held, ask to contact your country’s representative office in Taipei.
- Save this number: the Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline, Taipei office +886-2-2392-1969 (Monday to Friday, 2–10 pm). They’re the local LGBTQ+ group leading the push for answers on this raid.
👉 Pro tip: after the parade, head to the open-air courtyard behind the Red House in Ximending, where 10–15 gay bars share one plaza and you can wander between them with a drink (Café Dalida is the famous one). It’s the same neighborhood where the raid happened, and a packed, happy courtyard on Pride night says more than any police press release.
Taiwan is still one of the best places in Asia to be queer. It just had a bad weekend, and the best response is a full Pride.