Hundreds of Tainan residents yesterday gathered in front of Tainan County's Chi Mei Medical Center to show their strong support for President Chen Shui-bian (
After both Chen and Lu arrived at the hospital, pan-green supporters grew in number, waving flags and banners. Watched by hundreds of police officers, they stood outside the hospital' s emergency room, shouting "Elect A-bian!" The supporters condemned the shooting, with some crying out and demanding justice for Chen and Lu.
During the five hours Chen and Lu were in the hospital, local political figures visited them to express their commiserations.
"It' s not the time to evaluate the electoral situation but to consider the issue of national security," Tainan County Commissioner Su Huan-chih (
"How could a terrible thing like this happen? This incident comes just as the people are at the end of their patience," Tainan County Councillor Lin I-chin (
At the time they had been waiting for the green-camp candidates to reach Yungkang township, adjacent to Tainan City.
But Yungkang's pro-DPP residents soon headed for the hospital, where the crowd's grief and indignation was becoming more pronounced. When the cancellation of campaign rallies in southern Taiwan was announced, more pan-green supporters descended upon the hospital.
Chen and Lu left the hospital at 7:10pm under heavy guard.
Taiwanese were praised for their composure after a video filmed by Taiwanese tourists capturing the moment a magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Japan’s Aomori Prefecture went viral on social media. The video shows a hotel room shaking violently amid Monday’s quake, with objects falling to the ground. Two Taiwanese began filming with their mobile phones, while two others held the sides of a TV to prevent it from falling. When the shaking stopped, the pair calmly took down the TV and laid it flat on a tatami mat, the video shows. The video also captured the group talking about the safety of their companions bathing
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