President Chen Shui-bian (
Chen also lashed out at those who accused him of rigging the election.
"Those who accused me of vote-rigging are making the gravest insult to my integrity," Chen said during a meeting with the heads of the governments' five branches at the Presidential Office yesterday morning.
PHOTO: FANG PIN-CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
"Neither I nor my administration, not to mention those 200,000 staff members who took charge of the vote-counting process on March 20, would cheat in the election," he said.
"Since I did not conduct any vote-rigging, I welcome and support a public vote recount, the results of which I will 100 percent accept, no matter the outcome," Chen said.
"I also urge KMT Chairman Lien Chan (
Chen said he wanted to solve the dispute as soon as possible and wished to know why there were so many invalid ballots.
"You can propose the question and try to examine those ballots via judicial processes. You can't simply describe any invalid ballots, however, as vote-rigging," Chen said.
He asked the public to show empathy toward protesters in front of the Presidential Office, saying he could understand the protesters' feelings as he also had the experience of losing elections.
Responsibility
"I will not order the government to disperse those people," Chen said, adding that pan-blue leaders Lien and People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (
"You [Lien and Soong] brought people there, you should shoulder the responsibility of sending them home," Chen said.
He said a recount should be realized through either political negotiations or legal amendments.
"On March 21, the day after the presidential election, I ordered my staff and the Cabinet to work out an approach that would realize the opposition's request of launching a recount," Chen said.
"Since the case is being dealt with by the legal system, the government has no right to become involved, unless the opposition parties would like to withdraw their cases," he said.
Chen suggested two ways to realize a recount. The first involved authorizing a court and neutral task force to monitor the recount. The second was to amend the President and Vice President Election and Recall Law (選罷法) to allow the Central Election Commission to begin a recount within seven days.
Chen stressed that all politicians should abide by the law and act in accordance with the country's legal system.
"Taiwan is a democratic nation ruled by laws; therefore, the insistence on legal principles should be regarded as what we live for," he said.
Chen rejected a suggestion by Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) to issue an emergency decree to order a recount.
"The emergency decree will solve nothing and will just make things more complicated," he said.
Physical evidence
Chen also lifted his shirt to display the wound on his stomach, looking to counter conspiracy theories that suggest he staged Friday's attempted assassination.
"We are the ones who were shot. We are more eager than anyone else to find out the truth," he said.
"People are wondering why I could still walk into the hospital after being shot," Chen said. "It was because I am the president of Republic of China, I can never fall down."
He recalled the emotional stress of being shot.
"I almost could not say a thing to my wife on the phone," the president said. Officials released on Sunday a photograph of Chen on the operating table, holding his mobile phone to his ear while surgeons tended to his wound.
"Nineteen years ago, we were almost separated for ever. Nineteen years later, I almost did not live to speak to my wife again. I felt many different emotions," he said.
Chen's wife, Wu Shu-chen (
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
RSS