Opposition lawmakers yesterday slammed President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), saying he had shirked responsibility by insisting he was not aware of Supreme Court Judge Shao Yen-ling’s (邵燕玲) controversial ruling in a sexual assault case before nominating her to the Council of Grand Justices.
Ma apologized yesterday for his initial nomination of Shao for a seat on the Council of Grand Justices on Thursday after a public outcry over a controversial ruling handed down by a collegial panel led by Shao last year on the sexual assault of a three-year-old girl.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (高志鵬) blasted Ma’s defense as an attempt to “shirk responsibility.”
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
“Ma’s remarks were unacceptable,” Gao told a press conference. “Just because Shao did not tell Ma [about her controversial ruling] and Ma did not know does not mean Ma was not in the wrong.”
DPP Legislator Twu Shiing-jer (涂醒哲) said Ma himself chose the wrong person and yet he was letting Vice President Vincent Siew (蕭萬長), who headed the special task force recommending and screening candidates, shoulder the responsibility.
Saying the incident showed a lack of thoroughness in the screening process for the nomination, Gao suggested all Council of Grand Justices nominees be reconsidered.
The DPP caucus added that changing a nominee and offering apologies are not enough, asking the Ma government to make clear what went wrong in the nomination process.
If Ma failed to clear up the matter, it is the president himself who should be replaced, the lawmakers said.
In reference to the so-called “dinosaur” judges deemed unfit for the positions, DPP Deputy -Secretary-General Wong Chin-chu (翁金珠) called the Ma administration “an administration of dinosaurs.”
DPP Legislator Wang Sing-nan (王幸男) also ridiculed Ma’s choices of nominees, saying he might as well nominate singer Lotus Wang (王彩樺), who could at least give the people a semblance of hope by singing her song Bo Peep Bo Peep (有唱有保庇), which is about asking deities for protection and good luck.
POLITICAL AGENDA: Beijing’s cross-strait Mid-Autumn Festival events are part of a ‘cultural united front’ aimed at promoting unification with Taiwan, academics said Local authorities in China have been inviting Taiwanese to participate in cross-strait Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations centered around ideals of “family and nation,” a move Taiwanese academics said politicizes the holiday to promote the idea of “one family” across the Taiwan Strait. Sources said that China’s Fujian Provincial Government is organizing about 20 cross-strait-themed events in cities including Quanzhou, Nanping, Sanming and Zhangzhou. In Zhangzhou, a festival scheduled for Wednesday is to showcase Minnan-language songs and budaixi (布袋戲) glove puppetry to highlight cultural similarities between Taiwan and the region. Elsewhere, Jiangsu Province is hosting more than 10 similar celebrations in Taizhou, Changzhou, Suzhou,
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
COGNITIVE WARFARE: Chinese fishing boats transmitting fake identification signals are meant to test Taiwan’s responses to different kinds of perceived incursions, a report said Chinese vessels are transmitting fake signals in Taiwan’s waters as a form of cognitive warfare, testing Taipei’s responses to various types of incursions, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said on Friday. Several Chinese fishing vessels transmitted fake automatic identification system (AIS) signals in Taiwan’s waters last month, with one mimicking a Russian warship and another impersonating a Chinese law enforcement vessel, the report said. Citing data from Starboard Maritime Intelligence, the report said that throughout August and last month, the Chinese fishing boat Minshiyu 06718 (閩獅漁06718) sailed through the Taiwan Strait while intermittently transmitting its own AIS
CHINESE INFILTRATION: Medical logistics is a lifeline during wartime and the reported CCP links of a major logistics company present a national security threat, an expert said The government would bolster its security check system to prevent China from infiltrating the nation’s medical cold chain, a national security official said yesterday. The official, who wished to stay anonymous, made the remarks after the Chinese-language magazine Mirror Media (鏡周刊) reported that Pharma Logistics (嘉里醫藥物流) is in charge of the medical logistics of about half of the nation’s major hospitals, including National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei Veterans General Hospital. The company’s parent, Kerry TJ Logistics Co (嘉里大榮物流), is associated with the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the
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