Dissatisfied with the coverage by a Chinese-language newspaper, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Yu Shyi-kun announced yesterday that the party would boycott the paper and refuse it access to party officials.
Yu had filed a defamation lawsuit against the China Times after the daily claimed that Yu used the pejorative term "Chinese pigs" to refer to anti-President-Chen Shui-bian (
The paper later acknowledged the accusations contained in its article were groundless and offered an apology to Yu, but he did not withdraw the lawsuit and appeared in court yesterday.
"We will not verify any news about the DPP from the China Times. I hope that the public will go read other newspapers if they want to know about the DPP," Yu said in front of the Taipei District Prosecutor's Office.
Yu also lashed out at the paper's editor-in-chief, Wang Chien-chuang (
`Unfriendly'
"The China Times has been unfriendly to the DPP, and is turning itself into the newspaper of KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
As long as Wang is editor-in-chief, Yu said, the DPP will not take any questions from China Times reporters, and will no longer issue press releases to the paper.
The China Times story accused Yu of making provocative remarks, and also claimed that his remarks had raised "ethnic tension" and generated criticism from party members.
In response to Yu's remarks, about 20 reporters who cover the DPP beat later issued a written statement criticizing Yu for inhibiting the media's ability to perform their role.
"Refusing coverage to a particular media outlet violates the rights of DPP beat reporters and also the rights of China Times readers," the statement said.
Citing the DPP's party platform, which stated that newspapers, TV and radio stations should not be controlled by political parties, and that the independence of their staff should be protected, the statement urged Yu to reverse his decision.
"Every media outlet should enjoy the equal right to cover the DPP, regardless of its political stance. We demand that the party abide by its platform and oppose the decision," the statement said.
In an official statement issued late last night, the China Times said that the comments would be regarded as slander.
"Yu's comments were against the DPP's spirit of freedom, and oppressed opposing voices inside the party as well as voices from the press," the statement said.
Damaging
"DPP members with differing voices will be regarded as traitors. Critical media outlets will be regarded as pro-China media. This actually damages the DPP's image," the statement said
The China Times also said "Yu does not have the authority to stand alone and make the DPP's policies."
"Yu does not have the authority to refuse any media [access] without an endorsement from the DPP's Central Standing Committee," the statement said. "Also, since Yu does not represent the entire DPP, those who care about the future of the party should be strict and correct Yu's improper behavior or statements, because what he has done harms the party."
In addition to the statement by the China Times, the Association of Taiwan Journalists also issued a statement blasting Yu.
The association said "public faces do not have the right to refuse access or interviews from the press, because they deserve criticism and supervision by the press."
The statement said that "these interviewees certainly have the right to request a correction or an apology if the press misunderstands their words and misleads the public with news coverage, but that does not include declining access to the press."
Additional reporting by Jimmy Chuang
DAREDEVIL: Honnold said it had always been a dream of his to climb Taipei 101, while a Netflix producer said the skyscraper was ‘a real icon of this country’ US climber Alex Honnold yesterday took on Taiwan’s tallest building, becoming the first person to scale Taipei 101 without a rope, harness or safety net. Hundreds of spectators gathered at the base of the 101-story skyscraper to watch Honnold, 40, embark on his daredevil feat, which was also broadcast live on Netflix. Dressed in a red T-shirt and yellow custom-made climbing shoes, Honnold swiftly moved up the southeast face of the glass and steel building. At one point, he stepped onto a platform midway up to wave down at fans and onlookers who were taking photos. People watching from inside
A Vietnamese migrant worker yesterday won NT$12 million (US$379,627) on a Lunar New Year scratch card in Kaohsiung as part of Taiwan Lottery Co’s (台灣彩券) “NT$12 Million Grand Fortune” (1200萬大吉利) game. The man was the first top-prize winner of the new game launched on Jan. 6 to mark the Lunar New Year. Three Vietnamese migrant workers visited a Taiwan Lottery shop on Xinyue Street in Kaohsiung’s Gangshan District (崗山), a store representative said. The player bought multiple tickets and, after winning nothing, held the final lottery ticket in one hand and rubbed the store’s statue of the Maitreya Buddha’s belly with the other,
‘NATO-PLUS’: ‘Our strategic partners in the Indo-Pacific are facing increasing aggression by the Chinese Communist Party,’ US Representative Rob Wittman said The US House of Representatives on Monday released its version of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which includes US$1.15 billion to support security cooperation with Taiwan. The omnibus act, covering US$1.2 trillion of spending, allocates US$1 billion for the Taiwan Security Cooperation Initiative, as well as US$150 million for the replacement of defense articles and reimbursement of defense services provided to Taiwan. The fund allocations were based on the US National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2026 that was passed by the US Congress last month and authorized up to US$1 billion to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency in support of the
‘COMMITTED TO DETERRENCE’: Washington would stand by its allies, but it can only help as much as countries help themselves, Raymond Greene said The US is committed to deterrence in the first island chain, but it should not bear the burden alone, as “freedom is not free,” American Institute in Taiwan Director Raymond Greene said in a speech at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research’s “Strengthening Resilience: Defense as the Engine of Development” seminar in Taipei yesterday. In the speech, titled “Investing Together and a Secure and Prosperous Future,” Greene highlighted the contributions of US President Donald Trump’s administration to Taiwan’s defense efforts, including the establishment of supply chains for drones and autonomous systems, offers of security assistance and the expansion of
RSS