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Tsai urged to join DPP rally for Chen and Taiwan

Former Examination Yuan president Yao Chia-wen (姚嘉文) yesterday urged Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to join an evening rally on Saturday in support of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Taiwanese sovereignty.

The rally, organized by Chen's office and several pro-independence groups, will be held at 7pm at Yuanshan Park in Taipei.

To avoid focusing solely on support for Chen, the organizers said the gathering would be a rally for “Taiwan, our nation, sovereignty, democracy, human rights and justice.”

Various pan-green politicians and independence activists will speak at the event in support of Chen, Taiwanese sovereignty and democracy, Yao said.

“We will address a lot of issues at the event, and we will definitely talk about president Chen ... We welcome Tsai to say whatever she wants. I told her that she must attend the rally,” Yao told a press conference at Chen's office yesterday.

Tsai said on Monday that she might attend the rally if the organizers focused on the theme on justice and human rights.

Yao affirmed that Tsai had underlined the importance of addressing government injustices and abuse of power if she were to attend the rally and the organizers respect her opinion.

Several DPP heavyweights, including former party chairman Yu Shyi-kun, former premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄), DPP legislators Kao Jyh-peng (高志鵬) and Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) and former secretary-general of the Presidential Office Mark Chen (陳唐山) were at the press conference yesterday to express their support for Chen Shui-bian.

Central Taiwan Society president Michael Tai (戴正德) challenged the DPP integrity committee's investigation on Chen Shui-bian's alleged corruption cases and called on the administration of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to stop abusing its power by investigating only pan-green politicians.

“If the committee's investigation was based on information and news from media outlets, which have interpreted the issue with a biased view, then the result was distorted,” he said.

Saturday's rally will be held in the wake of the recent wave of arrests of top incumbent and former DPP officials, including Chen Shui-bian, Yunlin County Commissioner Su Chih-fen (蘇治芬) and Chiayi Commissioner Chen Ming-wen (陳明文). All three went on hunger strikes to protest what they called political persecution.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
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