Print

Mail

wiki links

Hunger striker fails to meet Chen

Failing in his hope to meet the president, Lee Wen-cheng (黎文正), who had staged a hunger strike calling on the president to step down, yesterday tore up his petition and condemned the Presidential Office as being too insincere to listen to his appeals.

"The Presidential Office said that proper procedures must be followed when arranging a meeting with the president. This is an excuse. The truth of the matter is that the president didn't want to meet us and accept our petition," Lee said.

Lee -- a junior majoring in clinical psychology at Fu Jen Catholic University who was expelled last month because of poor attendance -- marched to the Presidential Office yesterday afternoon with several other student protesters to submit their petition to the president.

The group was initially halted by the police, because they hadn't applied for a permit to assemble, but was later received by the director of the Presidential Office's Department of Public Affairs, David Lee (李南陽).

No consensus was reached during Lee Wen-cheng's 50-minute visit to the Presidential Office, as he insisted on meeting President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) in person, while David Lee told him that he would relay his appeal to the president.

Lee Wen-cheng expressed his discontent on leaving the Presidential Office.

Saying he had decided to suspend his sit-in in front of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Lee Wen-cheng said that he would continue his effort to push for Chen to resign by collecting signatures from the public.

Lee Wen-cheng began the hunger strike a week ago but was taken to hospital for treatment after collapsing on Wednesday afternoon.

He apologized yesterday for calling Presidential Office Secretary General Mark Chen (陳唐山) a "dog" in comments made late on Wednesday night.

On Wednesday night he said: "If you [President Chen] still have a conscience, please do not send your dogs to see us."

It was apparent that he was referring to Mark Chen, who had been dispatched by the president to visit Lee Wen-cheng on Tuesday afternoon.

Lee Wen-cheng said that he had made the comment because he didn't want to see "capable officials" being ordered about like a "dog" by the president.
This story has been viewed 1944 times.