Mayor Ma grilled over surveillance

Taipei city councilors yesterday delayed Mayor Ma Ying-jeou's (馬英九) first report to the eighth City Council session, as they engaged in a protracted discussion over political surveillance that included allegations that Ma himself had requested intelligence reports in the past.

Ma's report, originally scheduled for 2pm, was delayed for three hours. When he did finally speak, he addressed issues of urban development, cultural diversity, crime prevention, environmental programs and municipal Internet services.

The bickering started after DPP City Councilor Wang Shih-chien (王世堅) asked Ma questions about political surveillance -- a practice frequently engaged in by former KMT governments -- and the "round table conference" between President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰).

The recently formed Investigators Reform Association (調改會) claimed on Sept. 10 that the new government had been carrying out surveillance on opposition parties and a number of politicians, including Ma and Lien.

While Ma strongly condemned the alleged activities, the Presidential Office, the Ministry of Justice and the National Security Bureau denied the Investigators Reform Association's claim.

There is wide speculation that tension between Ma and the president contributed to the indefinite postponement of the "round-table meeting," proposed by the president, in which he was to have held discussions with leaders of opposition political parties.

Although DPP City Councilor Tuan Yi-kang (段宜康) yesterday voiced his support for Ma's recent attacks on Chen, he also demanded that Ma confirm whether the city government had ever conducted political surveillance on either city residents or city councilors.

"My request is simple," Tuan said. "I just want to be clear whether Mayor Ma has ever seen any intelligence reports on city councilors. If he has, he's in no position to criticize President Chen, because he himself is doing the same thing."

Showing a copy of a document signed by Ma, Tuan claimed that he had proof that the Ma administration has conducted such activities.

"I'd like to see what evidence Ma has to entitle him to lash out at President Chen so severely ? There must be no double standards here," he said.

DPP City Councilor Chiang Kai-shih (江蓋世) echoed Tuan's view, asking Ma to confirm whether he had ever taken advantage of municipal resources to conduct spying.

While KMT City Councilor Chen Hsueh-fen (陳雪芬) said that Ma lacked both the necessary equipment and the energy to conduct surveillance activities, DPP City Councilor Yeh Hsin-yi (葉信義) claimed that the city had a specific person and unit for handling such operations.

Council Speaker Wu Pi-chu (吳碧珠) voiced her support for Ma, saying that Tuan's "proof" must be an activity report on large-scale activities such as political demonstrations.

The council approved in 1995 a by-law empowering the city government to provide reports to either the mayor, deputy mayor or secretary-general on political demonstrations.

Ma later said as he delivered his report that the city "lacks the capability and the interest" to carry out political surveillance, either of city residents or of city councilors.