Nearly 1,000 people, mostly parents accompanied by their children, yesterday protested at the Civic Plaza outside New Taipei City Hall, voicing discontent over the city government’s handling of the alleged drugging of preschool students.

New Power Party Chairwoman Claire Wang (王婉諭) and Taiwan Children’s Rights Association director-general Wang Wei-chun (王薇君) organized the “Do Not Drug and Harm Our Children” rally after children from a private preschool in the city’s Banciao District (板橋) tested positive for traces of sedatives.

The city government took more than three weeks after it first received reports of children being sedated to provide on-campus drug testing and hold consultations with parents, Claire Wang wrote on Facebook.