In a surprise move, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) yesterday publicly endorsed a proposal that former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) should be granted medical parole, becoming the first political figure in the pan-blue camp to support the idea.
President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration has remained low-key in response to calls from pan-green supporters and civil groups to grant the imprisoned Chen a thorough checkup and treatment in hospital.
Hau raised the issue while attending the launch ceremony for “Liberty Lane” (自由巷) in Taipei in memory of late democracy advocate Deng Nan-jung (鄭南榕), urging the government to handle the issue of Chen’s hospital stay with sensitivity.
“The issue is not only a judicial problem, but also a social issue that involves the feelings of many pan-green supporters. Granting him a hospital stay would be a significant move to heal the scars and bring social reconciliation,” Hau said.
He called on the Ma administration to take responsibility for the issue and adopt a “more positive and active approach” in handling it, suggesting that related government departments should form a medical task force with medical experts and doctors to make assessments of Chen’s physical and mental condition.
“Former president Chen used to be our national leader, and I think he should be treated with respect and maybe more tolerance,” Hau said.
As one of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) potential future presidential candidates, Hau’s comments raised eyebrows for straying from the party line on the issue.
He dismissed speculation that he raised the issue to seek more support for his presidential bid in 2016 and said he had not discussed the issue with Ma before making the remarks.
Hau, son of former premier Hau Pei-tsun (郝柏村) and a former New Party politician, is considered a deep-blue politician, although he worked under the former DPP government in 2001 as the chief of the Environmental Protection Agency.
While denying any political motives for the comments, Hau drew attention from both the pan-blue and pan-green camps after the statement.
Ma declined to comment on Hau’s remarks.
The KMT also remained quiet on the issue. KMT spokesperson Ma Wei-kuo (馬瑋國) said the party respected Hau’s personal comments and said the Ministry of Justice would make a decision in accordance with procedure.
The former president is serving a 17-and-a-half-year prison term for corruption. He has complained about physical ailments, including chest pains.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) welcomed Hau’s support of medical parole for Chen.
“I am also glad the issue is getting more attention and we are likely marching closer to a consensus,” Su said.
Su said the DPP had always called for Chen’s release for medical treatment and it had never stopped working toward that goal.
Saying five city and county councils have so far reached resolutions supporting the release, Su said that more councils were expected to follow suit after they returned from recesses.
He said that hopefully there would be more pan-blue supporters showing compassion and supporting Chen’s release and that eventually, Ma Ying-jeou would agree to release Chen for medical treatment.
DPP Taipei City Councilor Chuang Ruei-hsiung (莊瑞雄) said he was surprised by Hau’s comments.
“I’ve been observing Hau’s performance in the Taipei City government during the past six years. Hau, who was never a sharp politician, finally got the point today,” Chuang said.
Hau’s approval ratings could increase by 20 percentage points because of the initiative, Chuang said.
Separately yesterday, the Ministry of Justice said in a press statement that three doctors from the Chang Gung Memorial Hospital’s Linkou Branch had visited Chen on July 20. One of them was a psychiatrist who interviewed Chen for one hour, the statement said, adding that the psychiatrist also inspected Chen’s cell and living conditions.
The statement said the psychiatrist concluded that Chen was not suffering from mental illnesses as previously claimed by Mackay Memorial Hospital psychiatrist Chen Chiao-chicy (陳喬琪), who, after visiting Chen, said the former president was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.
Chen therefore does not qualify for medical parole, the statement said. It added that the Taipei Prison had arranged for Chen to receive medical treatment in hospital and that doctors from Chang Gung Memorial Hospital’s Linkou Branch were scheduled to see Chen tomorrow and Monday.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique