Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) officials last night remained tight-lipped over campaign literature comparing President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) to former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda terror figurehead Osama bin Laden.
Endorsed by the Taichung City KMT campaign headquarters, which is headed by Mayor Jason Hu (
On the reverse side of the undated poster, a headline states that the referendum ballot is sacred and should not be used as a campaign tool. However, at the bottom of the page, the flyer uses an illustration to indicate how voters can leave voting stations after casting only their election ballots.
The poster accuses Chen of stealing the dignity that referendums confer to the people: "This kind of tactic is an exact copy of election fraud committed by Hussein." To the left, a caption next to the former Iraqi dictator reads, "I am Hussein, and you will all do as I say."
Previously, a blue-camp advertisement that compared Chen to Adolf Hitler sparked criticism from both the Democratic Progressive Party as well as Taiwan's Jewish community. The ad was withdrawn after only one day in distribution.
When asked for comment, KMT spokesman Justin Chou (
KMT-PFP alliance spokesman Pang Chien-kuo (
Hu is director general of the campaign headquarters, but a secretary in Hu's office said that Hu had not been not aware of the poster and had not authorized its distribution. Hu could not be reached for further comment.
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