An hour after the US announced the capture of Saddam Hussein, President Chen Shui-bian (
But, at a mass rally in his hometown of Tainan, Chen also pointed to the US' contradiction in promoting democracy in Iraq but blocking the Taiwanese people's right to pursue democracy, apparently referring to US opposition to the issues he has proposed asking in next year's referendum.
"The US waged a war in Iraq in order to give the Iraqi people democracy. Why can't the Taiwanese people vote to ask China to dismantle its missiles aimed at Taiwan and renounce the use of force against our country in a referendum?" Chen asked at a campaign rally last night in Hsinying, Tainan County.
"Why does the US restrict our rights to pursue democracy?" he said.
He said that US President George W. Bush's open rebuke of him at his meeting with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao (
Embarking on a busy campaign schedule following his nomination last week as presidential candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Chen traveled yesterday to his hometown to appeal for support from his townsfolk. Residents of Tainan County provided Chen his highest levels of support in the 2000 presidential election.
He attended temple worship in his hometown of Kuantien township, Tainan County; established official campaign headquarters in Tainan City and Tainan County; and last night participated in a massive campaign rally in Tainan County's stadium.
One day after the pan-blue alliance, composed of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and People First Party, set up campaign offices in Tainan, the DPP inaugurated its campaign headquarters in Tainan City and County as well, apparently engaging in competition with the pan-blue camp in their fight for support in Tainan.
Both the DPP and the pan-blue camp have emphasized their connections with Tainan, which is home to both Chen and Lien Chan (
Lien was born in China but moved to Tainan City with his family at the age of three.
Chen yesterday urged his supporters in Tainan City and Tainan County, two of his biggest strongholds, to boost their areas' support of his candidacy, respectively, to 65 percent and 70 percent.
Speaking at the opening of his Tainan County campaign headquarters, Chen pressed his local campaign director, Tainan County Commissioner Su Huang-chih (
It is widely rumored that Chen is dissatisfied with Su's public approval rate, which in a recent nationwide poll was lowest in the nation.
"Tainan City supporters have said they want to strive for 65 percent of the vote," he said. "Here in my hometown in Tainan County, we can't lose. Let's set a goal of 70 percent."
"We are optimistic that our support in both areas can exceed 60 percent," said DPP legislator Wang Hsin-nan (王幸男), whose electoral constituency is in Tainan County. "Many voters in Tainan are elderly. We believe the DPP administration's having increased old-age pensions will have a lot of appeal here and can help us win votes."
Chen also explained his national goal for the election saying "In the three-way election in 2000, I received 39 percent of the vote nationally. However, in the two-way race this time, we have to increase the national vote by at least ten percent to win the election, which means the people of Tainan must work hard to achieve that goal. Therefore, simply garnering half of the votes in Tainan is not enough."
Taiwan yesterday denied Chinese allegations that its military was behind a cyberattack on a technology company in Guangzhou, after city authorities issued warrants for 20 suspects. The Guangzhou Municipal Public Security Bureau earlier yesterday issued warrants for 20 people it identified as members of the Information, Communications and Electronic Force Command (ICEFCOM). The bureau alleged they were behind a May 20 cyberattack targeting the backend system of a self-service facility at the company. “ICEFCOM, under Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party, directed the illegal attack,” the warrant says. The bureau placed a bounty of 10,000 yuan (US$1,392) on each of the 20 people named in
The High Court yesterday found a New Taipei City woman guilty of charges related to helping Beijing secure surrender agreements from military service members. Lee Huei-hsin (李慧馨) was sentenced to six years and eight months in prison for breaching the National Security Act (國家安全法), making illegal compacts with government employees and bribery, the court said. The verdict is final. Lee, the manager of a temple in the city’s Lujhou District (蘆洲), was accused of arranging for eight service members to make surrender pledges to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in exchange for money, the court said. The pledges, which required them to provide identification
Nine retired generals from Taiwan, Japan and the US have been invited to participate in a tabletop exercise hosted by the Taipei School of Economics and Political Science Foundation tomorrow and Wednesday that simulates a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan in 2030, the foundation said yesterday. The five retired Taiwanese generals would include retired admiral Lee Hsi-min (李喜明), joined by retired US Navy admiral Michael Mullen and former chief of staff of the Japan Self-Defense Forces general Shigeru Iwasaki, it said. The simulation aims to offer strategic insights into regional security and peace in the Taiwan Strait, it added. Foundation chair Huang Huang-hsiung
’DISTORTION’: Beijing’s assertion that the US agreed with its position on Taiwan is a recurring tactic it uses to falsely reinforce its sovereignty claims, MOFA said The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said Chinese state media deliberately distorted Taiwan’s sovereign status, following reports that US President Donald Trump agreed to uphold the “one China” policy in a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). During the more than one-hour-long call, Xi urged Trump to retreat from trade measures that roiled the global economy and cautioned him against threatening steps on Taiwan, a Chinese government summary of the call said. China’s official Xinhua news agency quoted Xi as saying that the US should handle the Taiwan issue cautiously and avoid the two countries being drawn into dangerous
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