People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (
When approached by reporters on his way to a new book launch, Soong said that at the time the US government sent then-American Institute in Taiwan director Douglas Paal to make the promise in a bid to persuade them to end the pan-blue camp's violent demonstrations on Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Office.
Soong said that the US government later broke its promise after pan-blue supporters withdrew from the boulevard.
He did not present any evidence to substantiate his claim.
The assassination attempt took place during a campaign motorcade in Tainan on March 19, 2004.
Chen and Lu were both shot during the event. Bullets grazed Chen's stomach and hit Lu's knee, but the injuries were not life-threatening.
Lien and Soong, who ran on the same ticket in the election, lost the presidential election one day later by just 29,518 votes.
Lien and Soong called Chen and Lu's victory unfair and demanded a recount while many pan-blue supporters refused to recognize the result of the election and staged a demonstration on the boulevard.
Soong said yesterday that recent comments by forensics expert Henry Lee (李昌鈺) regarding the shooting represented a warning signal from the US to Chen that the US could expose the "truth" about the shooting.
Soong was referring to a report by the Chinese-language China Times on Thursday, which quoted Lee as saying that Lu was the prime target of the shooting.
However, later on Thursday, Judy Cheng (
Lee said he could not infer that Lu was the main target of the shooter from traces left at the scene.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
About 4.2 million tourist arrivals were recorded in the first half of this year, a 10 percent increase from the same period last year, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The growth continues to be consistent, with the fourth quarter of this year expected to be the peak in Taiwan, the agency said, adding that it plans to promote Taiwan overseas via partnerships and major events. From January to June, 9.14 million international departures were recorded from Taiwan, an 11 percent increase from the same period last year, with 3.3 million headed for Japan, 1.52 million for China and 832,962 to South Korea,
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