On the eve of the arrival of China's top negotiator with Taiwan for a new round of high-level talks, pro-independence activists, led by the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) , are taking to the streets in the central city of Taichung Sunday to protest what they call the President Ma Ying-jeou administration's pandering to China at the expense of Taiwan's sovereignty. While organizers have guaranteed that street protests will be peaceful and rational, Taichung Mayor Jason Hu has also vowed not to treat the protesters as rioters. Hu also said he would take full responsibility if the police abused their power and hurt civilians during demonstrations. The following is a digest of some local media reports on the issue: Liberty Times: Chen Yunlin, president of the Beijing-based Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Straits is scheduled to arrive in Taichung Monday for a second visit. During his Dec. 21-25 stay, he will sign with his Taiwanese counterpart, Straits Exchange Foundation Chairman Chiang Pin-kung, four agreements covering cooperation on fishing crew issues, double taxation, industrial product standards and agricultural quarantine. Like the nine agreements that President Ma Ying-jeou's administration has signed with China in the past 18 months without popular consent, the soon-to-be- signed four agreements have also not been approved or screened by the Legislature. With that in mind, the DPP and other civic groups are organizing street marches in Taichung to voice their opposition to the Ma administration's China-leaning policy. DPP officials said all those who are concerned about Taiwan's political future, economic well-being and their own job prospects and welfare rights are welcome to join the protests. China Times: As in the past, the DPP is welcoming the latest round of Chiang-Chen talks with a mass movement. During Chen's first visit to Taiwan in 2008, bloody clashes erupted between DPP supporters and law enforcement officers, tarnishing the country's image. DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen is clearly aware that if the street protests get out of hand, the party will have to pay the price in the upcoming legislative by- elections and even in elections for mayors of five municipalities to be held late next year. Sunday's street rally will just be a prelude. The real test to Tsai's leadership will come in the next five days with the presence of China's top envoy in Taiwan. Her political career will see a breakthrough only if the DPP can cut a balance between making its political stance heard and applying heat on Taiwanese and Chinese authorities with a mass movement. United Daily News: DPP Secretary-General Su Jia-chyuan paid a visit to Taichung Mayor Jason Hu Saturday to convey his party's hope that during Sunday's '100,000-persons protest march, ' there would be no recurrence of incidents seen in Chen Yunlin's first visit to Taipei last year, in which police officers forcibly took away national flags held by demonstrators and tried to stop a music CD shop from playing Taiwanese folk songs. Su also assured Hu that the party has set up an emergency response center and will do its utmost to keep the protest march orderly and peaceful. In response, Hu said he is confident of the DPP's sincerity to avoid violence in street rallies. Describing the planned protests as 'typhoons, ' Hu said it would be best if typhoons never hit. 'Our democracy will take a stride forward if 'typhoons' become 'breezes,'' he added. 