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Tsai calls for a revival of party spirit

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) said yesterday she hoped the party would rediscover its founding spirit to be able to rise again as a political force in the country.

Tsai made the comments while announcing a series of activities that will be held to mark the DPP’s 22nd anniversary later this month.

Requiem

The series of activities will begin with a requiem for late DPP chairmen Huang Hsin-chieh (黃信介) and Chiang Peng-chien (江鵬堅) at their tombs tomorrow, followed by a tea party for foreign ambassadors stationed in Taiwan and a gathering in honor of female elected representatives around the country on Friday.

A public evening party will be held at Yuanshan Park, the site of the DPP’s founding, on Saturday, while a nationwide beach clean-up activity is scheduled for Sunday — the party’s founding anniversary.

Tsai said the evening party would be held at Yuanshan Park to encourage the public to join the activity and show its concern for the nation’s future.

Challenges

The DPP chairwoman said that Taiwan was facing economic challenges from abroad and threats to its democracy at home.

With power concentrated in hte hands of one party, there is a lack of communication on the major issues confronting the country, she said.

Claiming that anti-democratic trends have already begun to appear in Taiwan, Tsai expressed the hope that people would stand together and take responsibility for protecting the nation from such threats.

Asked whether former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who is being investigated for suspected corruption and money laundering, would be invited to the DPP’s founding anniversary celebrations, Tsai said that all former party chairmen who currently hold party memberships would be invited.

Disgrace

Chen and his wife Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) withdrew from the DPP on Aug. 15 to apologize for the disgrace he had brought to the party by mismanaging campaign funds.

The withdrawal came one day after Chen called a news conference in which he admitted that Wu had wired overseas an unspecified amount of money that Chen had received for his two mayoral and two presidential election campaigns between 1993 and 2004.
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