DPP condemns Soong's actions

The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday condemned People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong's (宋楚瑜) public declaration that he would lead the crowd to break into the Presidential Office during a planned blue-camp rally on Apr. 10. His sexually unsavory comments about Vice President Annette Lu's (呂秀蓮) statement on the election-eve shooting incident was also slammed.

When Soong visited students on a hunger strike on Monday evening, he said that people should give up their lives for what they believe in and that he would accompany the crowd to break into the Presidential Office on April 10.

DPP Legislator Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) yesterday said that it was surprising that Soong would encourage students to break the law.

"This statement will do no good to the election controversy and it also ignores the students' security. A person who wants to lead the country should care more about the health and security of his supporters," Hsiao said.

"The DPP does not want to handle the controversy according to anything other than the law, and President Chen [Shiu-bian (陳水扁)] has already responded with kindness to the opposition leaders. But his kindness has not yet been responded to, and if James Soong really cares about the students, he should solve any problems according to the law," Hsiao said.

Soong's statement was also not appreciated by the pan-blue camp earlier on and put the Taipei City Government in a difficult situation.

While Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) would not respond to Soong's statement, city government spokesman Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇) said that Soong should have known better when the students present at the protest shot down his proposal.

The city government's Law and Regulation Commission Director Chen Ching-hsiu (陳清秀) was even more direct about Soong's proposal.

"PFP Chairman James Soong's declaration has imposed danger on the social order and it was indeed improper," Chen said.

Besides trying to provoke the crowd to break into the Presidential Office, Soong recently also made controversial remarks regarding Lu's statement released on April 4 on the shooting incident.

Lu said in the statement that when she noticed she had been shot, "my arm touched the lower rim of the jacket worn by the president, who was on my right. I felt his jacket was a bit sticky and wet, so I asked him, Mr. President, you too?'"

Soong later questioned Lu's statement by saying, "which lady would publicly touch a man's body on the spot which is about two or three inches below his stomach? How did Annette Lu manage to touch such a sensitive spot?"

DPP Legislator Chou Ya-shu (周雅淑) yesterday slammed Soong for the sexual innuendo.

"Mr. Soong has turned the care a wounded person gave to another wounded person into an insult of women. He is probably the only one who could still think about sex when somebody's life is in danger," Chou said.

"We do have doubts about Mr. Soong's mental condition. He might actually be ill mentally, and we request him to go to the nearest hospital for a checkup and prove that he is mentally sound within two days.

"We would then check with the Central Election Commission to see whether Soong should have qualified as a vice presidential candidate, since the mentally ill do not enjoy the rights a normal citizen is entitled to," Chou said.