Independent Legislator Chiu Yi (
With Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
When asked whether he would enter the Kaohsiung mayoral poll, Chiu said that it is one of the many options available to him in the future, but emphasized that the party has many other talented people and that he has to take care of his three children as a single father.
Meanwhile, Chiu yesterday cried foul over a subpoena issued by the Kaohsiung District Court asking him to appear in court on Friday.
Chiu is charged with violating the Assembly and Parade Law (
The court issued the subpoena on Monday after Chiu failed to show up at last Friday's hearing. Chiu has reportedly been absent from several court hearings related to the case.
Chiu said yesterday that while the court claimed he has appeared at only 10 of the hearings, he has actually attended court more than 20 times.
"I remember one time I received eight summons in one day and I answered all of them," he said. "I go to 70 percent of the court hearings, and when I can't make it, I ask my lawyers to go on my behalf."
Chiu also questioned whether it is appropriate for the plaintiff, the Kaohsiung District Court, to handle the case.
Claiming that the trial is illegal, Chiu said that he is planning to file for compensation for the losses he has incurred over the past few months.
Other KMT lawmakers also jumped to Chiu's defense.
KMT caucus whip Pan Wei-kang (潘維剛) said that she suspects that there is political interference in the matter and called on the administration to keep its nose out of the judicial system.
KMT legislators Lee Chuan-chiao (李全教) echoed Pan's opinion and declared that "justice is dead."
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
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US climber Alex Honnold left Taiwan this morning a day after completing a free-solo ascent of Taipei 101, a feat that drew cheers from onlookers and gained widespread international attention. Honnold yesterday scaled the 101-story skyscraper without a rope or safety harness. The climb — the highest urban free-solo ascent ever attempted — took just more than 90 minutes and was streamed live on Netflix. It was covered by major international news outlets including CNN, the New York Times, the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal. As Honnold prepared to leave Taiwan today, he attracted a crowd when he and his wife, Sanni,
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