The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday dismissed allegations that one of its legislators was buying SET-TV network through an investment consulting firm and called on politicians not to meddle in media outlets.
"We hope that political parties and politicians respect the media and give them freedom to report the news," KMT spokesman Su Jun-pin (
Su made the remarks in response to a report in yesterday's edition of the Chinese-language United Evening News, which claimed that KMT Legislator Alex Tsai (
Tsai admitted yesterday that he was trying to purchase a stake on behalf of a US investment consulting firm. However, he dismissed allegations the move was intended to help the KMT by changing the station's pro-green stance.
Tsai said he had provided the foreign investment company with advice about pricing for the deal and issued a letter of intent for purchase of the shares on behalf of the company.
"I did say in the assessment report to the company that the ratings of the station would increase if its coverage were less pro-green. But it was only my advice from a management viewpoint," he said.
Tsai also said he would not play any role in the management of the station.
Meanwhile, Su said the KMT had withdrawn from management of media outlets, and it was not behind the deal.
However, Cabinet Spokesman Shieh Jhy-wey (
"It is reasonable to believe that the transaction between Tsai and SET TV is not real because of Tsai's shady record," Shieh said, referring to the alleged irregularities involving Tsai in the sale of the Central Motion Picture Corp (CMPC), which was previously owned by the KMT.
CMPC vice president Chuang Wan-chun (
In related news, Shieh said the government had instructed the Fair Trade Commission to investigate the dispute arising from the sale of the former KMT-owned Broadcasting Corp of China.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
Former Czech Republic-based Taiwanese researcher Cheng Yu-chin (鄭宇欽) has been sentenced to seven years in prison on espionage-related charges, China’s Ministry of State Security announced yesterday. China said Cheng was a spy for Taiwan who “masqueraded as a professor” and that he was previously an assistant to former Cabinet secretary-general Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰). President-elect William Lai (賴清德) on Wednesday last week announced Cho would be his premier when Lai is inaugurated next month. Today is China’s “National Security Education Day.” The Chinese ministry yesterday released a video online showing arrests over the past 10 years of people alleged to be
THE HAWAII FACTOR: While a 1965 opinion said an attack on Hawaii would not trigger Article 5, the text of the treaty suggests the state is covered, the report says NATO could be drawn into a conflict in the Taiwan Strait if Chinese forces attacked the US mainland or Hawaii, a NATO Defense College report published on Monday says. The report, written by James Lee, an assistant research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of European and American Studies, states that under certain conditions a Taiwan contingency could trigger Article 5 of NATO, under which an attack against any member of the alliance is considered an attack against all members, necessitating a response. Article 6 of the North Atlantic Treaty specifies that an armed attack in the territory of any member in Europe,
LIKE FAMILY: People now treat dogs and cats as family members. They receive the same medical treatments and tests as humans do, a veterinary association official said The number of pet dogs and cats in Taiwan has officially outnumbered the number of human newborns last year, data from the Ministry of Agriculture’s pet registration information system showed. As of last year, Taiwan had 94,544 registered pet dogs and 137,652 pet cats, the data showed. By contrast, 135,571 babies were born last year. Demand for medical care for pet animals has also risen. As of Feb. 29, there were 5,773 veterinarians in Taiwan, 3,993 of whom were for pet animals, statistics from the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency showed. In 2022, the nation had 3,077 pediatricians. As of last
XINJIANG: Officials are conducting a report into amending an existing law or to enact a special law to prohibit goods using forced labor Taiwan is mulling an amendment prohibiting the importation of goods using forced labor, similar to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) passed by the US Congress in 2021 that imposed limits on goods produced using forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region. A government official who wished to remain anonymous said yesterday that as the US customs law explicitly prohibits the importation of goods made using forced labor, in 2021 it passed the specialized UFLPA to limit the importation of cotton and other goods from China’s Xinjiang Uyghur region. Taiwan does not have the legal basis to prohibit the importation of goods