Kaohsiung City Council faces wrath of protesters

A fracas erupted yesterday in front of Kaohsiung City Hall, as over 500 angry resident mainlanders and their supporters protested against a Kaohsiung official who blamed the influx of mainland immigrants for the city's flooding problems.

On Thursday, Wu Meng-te (吳孟德), director of the city's Bureau of Public Works, said that too many mainlanders had flowed into the city, thereby causing overdevelopment, excessive pumping of groundwater and pressure on water tables. These problems, Wu said, led to massive flooding in the city on July 11 last year.

Wu later apologized during the session "to the citizens of Kaohsiung" saying the term "mainlanders" had been a slip of the tongue.

Protesters yesterday, however, were not in a forgiving mood.

Led by city councilors Dai Te-ming (戴德銘) of the KMT and May Zai-hsin (梅再興) and Yang Se-yu (楊色玉) of the PFP, protesters held placards reading "Wu Meng-te, Step Down" and "[Kaohsiung mayor] Frank Hsieh, apologize." The demonstrators chanted that Wu's comments were no "slip of tongue," and accused him of suffering from an "ethnic complex."

Several times during the protest, the crowd scuffled with Kaohsiung City Council security guards as they attempted to push their way into the council's public gallery.

The crowd became more agitated as the protest wore on as a loud shoving match erupted between demonstrators and police when Kaohsiung City Mayor Frank Hsieh arrived to attend the council session. With the help of the council's security contingent, Hsieh was eventually able to break free of the crowd, which had besieged his car.

"Apologies have been given for this [slip of tongue]," Hsieh told the protesters via megaphone before entering the building. "Let's not magnify an issue when an apology has been given."

Once in the council session, Hsieh again made his position clear concerning Wu's "slip of tongue."

"I agree that [Wu's] statement was controversial and inappropriate," Hsieh said. "I am willing to apologize for it. I apologize."

Hsieh added that there was no flaw in Wu's professionalism.

"Wu is here because he wants to better-develop Kaohsiung." Hsieh said. "Wu has apologized. And I hope the public will be forgiving and not magnify the issue any further."

Hsieh stressed that his administration harbored no "ethnic complex," as several Kaohsiung government officials are themselves resident mainlanders.

Appearing solemn throughout the council session yesterday, Wu kept silent, though at some points, he appeared on the verge of weeping.

Wu reportedly asked to resign, but as of press time last night, Hsieh had not made a decision.r

Meanwhile, Premier Yu Shyi-kun yesterday said that the Cabinet would not allow government policies that hinder ethnic integration.

Yu made the statement yesterday at a legislative session in response to an inquiry from the PFP's Cheng Chin-ling (鄭金鈴) as to whether any members of the Cabinet held an "ethnic complex."