Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Yu Shyi-kun's comments on Thursday announcing the Chinese-language China Times as persona non grata and to which the DPP would deny access drew a mixed reaction from legislators yesterday.
DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (
"Chairman Yu has a personal grievance with the China Times, but that should not be elevated to party level," Ker said. "We 100 percent respect freedom of the press, but we also hope the press maintains impartiality."
Yu declared the boycott on Thursday after he appeared in court for a defamation lawsuit against the paper after it claimed that Yu used the term "Chinese pigs" to refer to anti-President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) protesters in a front page story on Sep 25.
Although the paper later acknowledged the accusation made in its story was groundless, Yu did not withdraw the lawsuit.
Yu criticized the paper's editor-in-chief, Wang Chien-chuang (王健壯) for making it a "mouthpiece" of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
The DPP late on Thursday night issued a statement to elaborate on Yu's comments.
It said Yu's action against the China Times was aimed at the paper's "twisted guiding principles resulting from political and economic interests" and that "it was not an attempt to deny journalists' rights to work."
"The China Times has lost its objectivity because of meddling in political wrangles," the statement said.
It added that Yu's announcement was in line with the party's platform to safeguard press freedom.
DPP Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (
DPP Lawmaker Cheng Yun-peng (鄭運鵬) said that while he personally would not refuse to be interviewed by the paper, the boycott could serve as a warning for the paper to engage in some introspection.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
"I believe that many politicians have mixed feelings about the press, but the media is, after all, the Fourth Estate, which is an important tool to guarantee diversity in a democratic society," Ma said, adding that he believed Yu had overreacted.
When asked by the press to comment, Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said he felt awkward discussing the matter.
"Whatever I say would be interpreted as a criticism of [Yu]," Wang said.
Wang said Yu's action was understandable, but he added that he would not do the same thing if he were Yu.
"I was often [misunderstood] by the press," Wang told reporters. "You often made a fuss over what I said, but I chose to leave it at that."
KMT lawmakers were less than tactful in their comments on Yu, blasting his announcement as akin to "political terrorism."
"Yu stifles free speech," KMT Legislator Tsai Chin-lung (
KMT Legislator Lin Te-fu (
The KMT lawmakers asked Yu to revoke his announcement, which they said would do "harm to the country's democracy and the public's right to know."
also see story:
Editorial: Yu slaps himself in the face
‘NON-RED’: Taiwan and Ireland should work together to foster a values-driven, democratic economic system, leveraging their complementary industries, Lai said President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday expressed hopes for closer ties between Taiwan and Ireland, and that both countries could collaborate to create a values-driven, democracy-centered economic system. He made the remarks while meeting with an Irish cross-party parliamentary delegation visiting Taiwan. The delegation, led by John McGuinness, deputy speaker of the Irish house of representatives, known as the Dail, includes Irish lawmakers Malcolm Byrne, Barry Ward, Ken O’Flynn and Teresa Costello. McGuinness, who chairs the Ireland-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Association, is a friend of Taiwan, and under his leadership, the association’s influence has grown over the past few years, Lai said. Ireland is
FINAL COUNTDOWN: About 50,000 attended a pro-recall rally yesterday, while the KMT and the TPP plan to rally against the recall votes today Democracy activists, together with arts and education representatives, yesterday organized a motorcade, while thousands gathered on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei in the evening in support of tomorrow’s recall votes. Recall votes for 24 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and suspended Hsinchu City mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) are to be held tomorrow, while recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers are scheduled for Aug. 23. The afternoon motorcade was led by the Spring Breeze Culture and Arts Foundation, the Tyzen Hsiao Foundation and the Friends of Lee Teng-hui Association, and was joined by delegates from the Taiwan Statebuilding Party and the Taiwan Solidarity
A saleswoman, surnamed Chen (陳), earlier this month was handed an 18-month prison term for embezzling more than 2,000 pairs of shoes while working at a department store in Tainan. The Tainan District Court convicted Chen of embezzlement in a ruling on July 7, sentencing her to prison for illegally profiting NT$7.32 million (US$248,929) at the expense of her employer. Chen was also given the opportunity to reach a financial settlement, but she declined. Chen was responsible for the sales counter of Nike shoes at Tainan’s Shinkong Mitsukoshi Zhongshan branch, where she had been employed since October 2019. She had previously worked
An SOS message in a bottle has been found in Ireland that is believed to have come from the Taiwanese captain of fishing vessel Yong Yu Sing No. 18 (永裕興18號), who has been missing without a trace for over four years, along with nine Indonesian crew members. The vessel, registered to Suao (蘇澳), went missing near Hawaii on Dec. 30, 2020. The ship has since been recovered, but the 10 crew members have never been found. The captain, surnamed Lee (李), is believed to have signed the note with his name. A post appeared on Reddit on Tuesday after a man
RSS