Two Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday urged the Ministry of National Defense (MND) to charge Marine General Chi Lin-liang (季麟連), strategy adviser to the president, with violation of military law after Chi participated in a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) campaign event for one of its legislative candidates earlier this month.
KMT Legislator Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) told a press conference that Chi's behavior had violated the military's "administrative impartiality" and Article 6 of the National Defense Act (國防法).
The article stipulates that military personnel on active service are prohibited from taking positions in political parties, political groups or the campaigns of candidates running for government positions.
The article also bars military personnel from forcing other military officers to join a political party or participate in political activities.
Hung made the comments after a story in yesterday's Chinese-language China Times quoted an anonymous military source as saying that Chi had made a brief public remark during a campaign event for DPP legislative candidate Lee Wen-chung (李文忠) earlier this month.
KMT Legislator Lee Chia-chin (
Lee Chia-chin urged Minister of National Defense Lee Tien-yu (
Military spokesman Yu Sy-tue (
Lee Wen-chung said he believed Chi had already retired, which would have exempted him from the military rules on political activity.
Additional reporting by CNA
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