The Jan. 11 elections are for voters to side with democracy and choose parties that protect the nation instead of those that take China’s side, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Secretary-General Luo Wen-Jia (羅文嘉) said yesterday, pointing to anti-government protests in Hong Kong.
“Taiwanese have emotional feelings about what is happening in Hong Kong... The situation there could be better if the Hong Kong Legislative Council had a majority of democratic parties, then it [the territory’s government] could not do as it pleases,” Luo said at the launch of a campaign video at the DPP headquarters.
“Taiwanese should cherish our democratic system, with government by majority rule,” he said. “However, as we face intimidation from China, it is likely that our legislature will be comprised of many political parties after the election.”
Photo: Chang Tsung-chiu, Taipei Times
“However, there are only two large party blocs in the legislature. One aims to safeguard Taiwan, while the other is pro-China. The two paths are totally different and there is no ambiguity between them,” he added.
The DPP is spearheading the movement to protect and defend Taiwan’s democracy, which is a different path from the other bloc, Luo said, urging people to vote the parties that safeguard Taiwan into a majority at the Legislative Yuan.
“We must unite together and consolidate the votes to bolster the legislative seats for parties that uphold progress and democracy,” he said.
The campaign video is centered around a “legislative seat,” in which people take turns sitting and voice their support in different cities.
It begins with three young people saying: “Do not be afraid, Taiwan will not become Hong Kong,” and a young woman saying: “Do not believe China. Please believe in democracy.”
At the end, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) says: “Please use your ballot to say ‘no’ to [China’s] ‘one country, two systems’ principle.”
Luo criticized the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) for placing retired army general Wu Sz-huai (吳斯懷) in the No. 4 spot in its list of legislator-at-large nominees.
Wu is known for his pro-China and pro-unification stance, and has participated in China’s national day celebrations in Beijing.
“For most of the KMT’s history, its most important support came from people and groups defending the existence of the Republic of China [ROC]. Now with Wu placed near the top on the nominee list, the KMT is trampling the ROC under the feet of the People’s Republic of China [PRC]. It has abandoned the ROC,” Luo said.
“In the past, the ROC and PRC were adversaries, but with equal political standing. Now the KMT has gotten rid of the ROC, now there is only the PRC,” Luo added.
“Wu has visited China and sat among the audience to hear a speech by [Chinese President] Xi Jinping (習近平). He served as consultant for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army. These are the facts and not mere labels imposed by others,” Luo said.
Many people have lost faith in the KMT, “because the KMT has been transforming into the Chinese Communist Party. This is not the original KMT, it has caused its supporters, who were defenders of the ROC, to have misgivings and despair.”
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