After the latest cross-strait talks ended, Chinese envoy Chen Yunlin visited the Taipei Flora Expo yesterday and was heavily guarded throughout the process, which some other visitors criticized as excessive privilege. But Mayor Hau Lung-bin explained that all arrangements were done in accordance with diplomatic etiquette.

Early in the morning, before the Taipei Flora Expo was officially open to the public, several hundred police officers were on hand to protect Association for Relations Across the

Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin and other members of his delegation.

The group took advantage of the time before the park opened to conduct their visit as

Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin accompanied this group to a special photo session outside the Xian courtyard.

Chen was in good spirits as

he continued his visit to the Dream Pavilion and the Dachia Riverside Park area.

Soon, it was 9AM and visitors had begun to enter the park, but different layers of police made it difficult to reach Chen.

Pro-independence groups were also outside the park shouting slogans and

trying to forcefully enter the park. They were alll prevented from doing so before the opening time of 9AM.

Taipei City Police Department said that nearly four hundred police officers were

on-site with Chen visiting the park ahead of the official opening being a special priviledge not available to other ticket holding visitors. Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin stressed that

this was standard VIP etiquette,

as special preparations were also in place so Chen would not pass by nor see any ROC flags. In the past few days,

wherever Chen has gone there has been a big media and police following.

And with the 6th Chiang Chen summit soon ending, Taipei streets will soon return to their normal calm.