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Farmers, fishermen lash out over DPP's corruption charges

The Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) move to reverse two recently passed amendments that they alleged would result in farmers and fishermans' associations becoming tainted by "black-gold politics" drew ire from organization members yesterday.

Led by Secretary-General of the Taiwan Provincial Farmers' Association (TPFA) Chang Yong-cheng (張永成), some 200 members attended a meeting held by pan-blue lawmakers yesterday, demanding the DPP stop damaging their reputations by labeling them as corrupt.

The TPFA is the top level of the three-tiered federated system of 324 farmers' associations that corresponds to the country's administrative boundaries.

The legislature last Friday passed Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-introduced amendments to the Farmers' Association Law (農會法) and the Fishermans' Association Law (漁會法).

The passage of the two bills canceled the three-term limit for secretary-generals of the associations and lowered the requirements for their re-appointment.

The bills also stipulated that association staff standing trial for corruption would not be relieved of their posts until a final verdict is delivered -- a departure from current regulations, which dictate that employees convicted in the second stage of a trial be fired.

The DPP has accused the KMT of easing the regulations in exchange for the support of local bosses in upcoming elections, and suggested premier-designate Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) file a request asking the legislature to reconsider the two amendments.

"It was DPP political manipulation to label us as `black-gold'. Among some 60,000 staffers hired by farmers' associations, only 14 people have been found guilty of corruption, and only one was related to the business of the association," Chang Yong-cheng said.

He added that it was outrageous to label the associations as symbols of "black-gold," given that instances of corruption were as low as one in 60,000.

Although the DPP said the passage of the two bills would benefit the KMT in the election, the amendments provoked infighting within the KMT.

At the KMT's Central Standing Committee meeting on Wednesday, Legislator Shyu Jong-shyoung (徐中雄) said the party's image had suffered as a result of the two amendments.

KMT Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇) also urged the party to come up with remedial measures to rebut the charges that the KMT is covering up black-gold politics.

A group of KMT lawmakers including Pai Tien-chih (白添枝), Yang Chiung-ying (楊瓊瓔) and Lin Tsang-min (林滄敏) present at yesterday's meeting, said that they would not give way to the request to reversing the amendments.

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