Listing the disparaging and insulting comments Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) has made about other countries, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators said that the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) presidential candidate would be a disaster for international diplomacy if elected.
While campaigning, Han has made outlandish and derogatory remarks, which have offended people from other nations, DPP legislative caucus director-general Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) told a news conference.
“If a person such as Han was representing our nation, how would the world perceive Taiwan?” she asked.
Photo courtesy of Kuan Bi-ling
After compiling Han’s public comments on foreigners and international affairs, “we found he has insulted Southeast Asians and many others, offending 95 countries in total,” she said.
Among the examples Kuan cited were remarks by Han on Aug. 29 last year.
Talking about Taiwan’s young people and migrant workers, Han said: “All the phoenixes have flown away, while a bunch of chickens are moving in.”
The remark was widely criticized for comparing migrant workers to chickens.
Han on March 6 said he worried that hiring educated employees from the Philippines “would cause a psychological shock for Taiwanese, because [they might wonder]: How has our ‘Maria’ become a teacher?”
The term “Maria” is a slur widely used in Taiwan to refer to migrant workers, especially those working as a caregivers.
At a KMT banquet on Sept. 15, Han spoke of a friend selling orchids in Africa, and said he asked him: “Are you sure that black people in Africa would need orchids in their homes?”
Han insulted all 57 African countries with the discriminatory remark, Kuan said.
When meeting Japanese academics on Sept. 6, Han told the media that he had waited for them for 25 minutes, but it was Han’s office that changed the time and venue, and did not properly pass on the message, which caused the Japanese group’s late arrival, Kuan said.
DPP legislator-at-large candidate Hung Shen-han (洪申翰) said that during Han’s visit to Hong Kong on March 22, he was quoted as saying: “There is a happy country, Bhutan — I think it is in the Alps. The people there are simple and rather dumb, as long as they have bread to eat, they believe they are the world’s happiest people.”
During the televised presidential debate on Dec. 29, Han said that the EU had approved categorizing nuclear energy as green energy, Hung said, adding that Han’s remark was false, had distorted EU policies and would offended European countries.
The Constitution grants the president the important duties of taking charge of international affairs, national defense and cross-strait relations, Kuan said.
“Voters must choose a competent person with good leadership and management skills for our president,” she said. “Han has been talking nonsense and saying outrageous things, and continues to offend people from other countries.”
In response, Han’s campaign office spokeswoman Anne Wang (王淺秋) said that the DPP’s news conference had “little substance.”
Additional reporting by Ann Maxon
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
One of two tropical depressions that formed offshore this morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. It is expected to move in a northwesterly direction as it continues building momentum, possibly intensifying into Typhoon Mitag this weekend, she added. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is expected to approach southeast of Taiwan on Monday and pass through the Bashi Channel between Tuesday and Wednesday,
About nine Taiwanese are “disappeared,” detained, or otherwise deprived of freedom of movement in China each month, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. Between Jan. 1 last year and Aug. 31 this year, 188 Taiwanese travelers went missing, were detained and interrogated, or had their personal freedom restricted, with some questioned in airports or hotel lobbies, the council said. In a statement ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the council urged people visiting China for any reason to be highly vigilant and aware of the risks. Of the reported cases, 50 people were “disappeared” after entering China, 19 were detained and 119 had
RSS