A patron at a well-known gay bar in Taipei recalls being “extremely shocked and confused” when approximately 30 police officers staged a dramatic raid on October 3, ultimately taking dozens of people away for questioning. The raid targeted Commander D, a 14-year-old BDSM-themed club located in the Ximending area of the Wanhua District. Wanhua Precinct police stated they had received 13 complaints about the venue from the public between January 1 and the day of the raid. While police visits to Taipei clubs are not unusual, this operation was distinct as officers arrived with a search warrant approved by the Taipei District Court.
Lin, a 34-year-old clinical psychologist and founder of the independent publication Taipei Rainbow Party Weekly, witnessed the event and described it as “fundamentally different” from typical nightclub inspections. According to Lin, more than 30 uniformed and plainclothes officers flooded the club at approximately 4:30 p.m., stopping the music and turning on the lights. Videos shared on social media showed officers ordering customers to squat down and put away their phones. Police reported that 58 customers were inside; Lin noted that about two-thirds were shirtless, most of the rest were in their underwear, and only a few were completely naked. Police told the media they found used condoms and that some customers were nude. Witnesses recounted that those not wearing clothes were not allowed to dress, while those who had already dressed were forced to remove their clothes to preserve evidence.
The conduct of the officers has drawn significant condemnation. Witnesses reported that police did not initially display the warrant and were seen in videos ordering customers to stop talking and to challenge the operation in court. Officers also allegedly mocked a man in a wheelchair, questioning his ability to have sex. When a manager defended the patron, he was reportedly handcuffed and forced to kneel on the floor. After several hours, 51 people were loaded into police vehicles and taken to the precinct for questioning as “witnesses.” While several officers have since been disciplined, LGBTQ+ advocates argue the issue is structural.
Legal experts have questioned whether police overstepped their authority. Lingwei Li, founder and managing lawyer at Zenkuan Law Firm, stated that a premises warrant does not grant police the right to search every customer’s property, as individual searches require separate criteria or consent. Li noted that compulsory drug tests should be limited to those under arrest, not witnesses, and that there is no legal basis for barring witnesses from using their phones. Furthermore, Li argued that police blurred the line between witnesses and suspects, as a witness cannot be detained unless they fail to appear after a formal summons. Regarding the nudity, Li explained that the Social Order Maintenance Act requires conduct that offends public decency and continues despite a warning to qualify as an offense. “This case involves an abuse of police authority,” Li said, adding that prohibiting nude individuals from dressing contradicts the requirement of failing to heed warnings. “Ordering people who were already dressed to undress is not preserving evidence. It’s humiliation.”
The incident occurred just four weeks before Taipei’s annual Pride celebration, which is Asia’s largest. Sean Du, secretary-general of the Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline Association, said the event exposes a serious gap in how institutions treat sexual minorities. Taiwan has built a reputation as an LGBTQ+-friendly society since the end of martial law in 1987, becoming the first in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage in 2019. Despite this, activists are calling for structural changes to ensure equal treatment, as the raid has left some patrons traumatized.
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Md. Kazi Bijoy is a dedicated tech enthusiast and content creator with a passion for digital innovation. With years of experience in the tech industry, he specializes in breaking down complex topics into easy-to-understand guides. When he isn’t writing, he explores the latest gadgets and researches emerging trends in the digital world.