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Sanatorium problem solvable: Su
'WIN-WIN':
The premier won the first battle by stopping the destruction of the building, but now the pressure is on to find a way to address the needs of all the parties
By Shih Hsiu-chuan
STAFF REPORTER
Tuesday, Apr 17, 2007, Page 2
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"Today the county government obeyed the [suspension] order from the Executive Yuan, but I was hoping Premier Su would have come with me to Sinjhuang to hear appeals for the MRT system."
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--- Chou Hsi-wei, Taipei County commissioner
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After dissuading the Taipei County Government from dismantling the Losheng (Happy Life) Sanatorium -- scheduled for yesterday -- Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said his earlier promise to preserve 90 percent of the compound was not just an idea.
"We really shouldn't tear it down," Su said yesterday during an interview with Happy Radio, referring to the Losheng Sanatorium, built in 1930s to house leprosy patients.
In order to build a depot for the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system, the government had decided to relocate the sanatorium residents to a newly built home nearby and demolish most of the Losheng.
The Taipei County Government had given residents until yesterday to move out.
Facing an avalanche of protests calling on the government to preserve the sanatorium, Su last week requested that the Taipei County Government hold off its plan for two months.
"Today the county government obeyed the [suspension] order from the Executive Yuan, but I was hoping Premier Su would have come with me to Sinjhuang to hear appeals for the MRT system," Taipei County Commissioner Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋) said.
"We should not prolong the controversy any longer. We have to find a solution within two months," he said.
During the interview, Su said that his Cabinet would do everything in its power to find a "win-win" solution which would preserve the sanatorium and allow the MRT to start operations as scheduled.
"It was the former [Chinese Nationalist Party, KMT] administration's decision to demolish the sanatorium to make room for an MRT maintenance site," Su said, adding that he was elected county commissioner three years after the decision was made.
The premier vowed that the Cabinet would continue to liaise with the Taipei County Government and Taipei Rapid Transit Corporation to find a workable solution to the problem within two months.
Also see story:
Editorial: Lepers get a welcome reprieve
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