Amid the ongoing furor over a controversy involving a television station, Premier Frank Hsieh (
Making remarks to the press, DPP legislative whip Chen Chi-jun (
Government Information Office (GIO) Minister Pasuya Yao (姚文智) also complained yesterday that constant calls have interrupted the lives of his staff and family ever since Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers publicized his office and home numbers.
"I once again urge the public not to make these kinds of calls, because these have seriously interfered with many innocent people, including my staff members and my family members," Yao said, referring to threatening and abusive phone calls.
Yao made the remarks at a press conference held at the GIO, during which he played recorded clips of calls for the press.
"Tell Yao ... if he dares to shut down TVBS, he had better watch his back," an anonymous man shouted on the phone.
"Tell Mr. Minister that it is ridiculous for the government to hammer a TV station like that," another caller said on the phone.
Some of the clips contained only strings of non-stop profanities.
Aside from the first clip telling Yao to "watch his back," none of the other clips played contained threats against Yao's life.
However, a senior staff member at the GIO who wished to remain anonymous told the Taipei Times that several threatening calls had been made, but that the clips were not made public because the police are investigating them.
"I really do not know why lawmakers would do this [make public my numbers]. But what they did has seriously bothered me, my co-workers and my family members," Yao said. "We will not change our policies because of these calls. I also sincerely hope that politics can be removed from this."
KMT legislators Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) and Kuo Su-chun (郭素春) made Yao's numbers public on Monday and encouraged people to call him to complain about the GIO's investigation of TVBS' foreign shareholding status, and warning that the government could suspend TVBS' operating license.
"In addition to bothering my co-workers, these callers bombard my home phone as well. That scares my family members," Yao said.
Yao said he has filed a request with the National Police Agency for bodyguards. In the meantime, his local police have increased security measures for Yao, his family and his residence.
Asked how Hsieh had responded when told about the harassment, Yao said, "He only told me to be careful."
Regarding the TVBS issue, Yao said that today will be the deadline for the station to explain its foreign shareholding status, and he will be expecting a clear explanation. He said he also learned from a magazine that TVBS chairman Norman Leung (梁乃鵬), who is also the former chairman of the Hong Kong government's Broadcasting Authority, is now in Taiwan.
"If that is the case, I would be more than happy to meet him in person here at the GIO and hear his explanation," Yao said. "However, if [today's] report is clear enough, it will not be necessary to meet Leung."
Meanwhile, Connie Lin (林育卉), director of the Broadcasting Development Fund, said she hoped that the TVBS problem would be resolved as soon as possible.
TVBS is alleged to be in violation of a law that stipulates that foreign holdings in a station or newspaper cannot exceed 50 percent.
Lin proposed that TVBS should either stop being an "in-country" channel (境內頻道) or alter its shareholding structure.
TVBS could legally register as a channel based outside of Taiwan, and there was no reason to be afraid of doing so, she said.
However, some critics have questioned how the situation came about in the first place.
Additional reporting by Jean Lin
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard