Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Huang Kuo-shu (黃國書) yesterday said he would leave the party and would not seek re-election, as he confirmed a report that he worked as an informant for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) authoritarian regime when he was a student.
The Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported on Saturday that Huang, 57, worked as an informant for the KMT when he was in college.
Huang yesterday on Facebook said he accepts political responsibility for working with the authoritarian government to spy on his fellow students when he was in university and apologized to those affected by his actions.
Photo: Hsieh Chun-lin, Taipei Times
He also said he would resign from the DPP.
“Back then, I made friends with dissidents, and the authorities came to me saying that I would ‘run into trouble’ if I kept associating with the dissidents,” he wrote. “They told me that I would be protected if I helped them gather information.”
After several meetings with the authorities he believed them and cooperated with their demands, he wrote.
Huang did not specify for how long he provided information or when, only saying that he was in his early 20s at the time, which means he became an informant in the mid-1980s, not long before martial law was lifted in 1987.
“Since taking office [as a lawmaker] I have worked hard to promote Taiwan’s local history and culture. I believe that was my way of seeking redemption,” he wrote. “I cannot take back what I have done, but I still hope to contribute to Taiwanese society.”
Huang said he would finish his term as legislator and withdraw from the DPP afterward to perform cultural and public welfare roles.
DPP spokeswoman Yen Juo-fang (顏若芳) said the party respected Huang’s decision, as well as his “bravery in facing his past.”
DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) praised Huang and said he hoped Huang would remain in the DPP to “help it defend Taiwan.”
DPP Legislator Fan Yun (范雲), who has said she was monitored by the KMT for years during the Martial Law era, said she was “shocked and deeply hurt” upon learning about Huang’s past actions, but that she also felt his admission was “an important first step” toward bringing facts to light.
DPP Legislator Mark Ho (何志偉) said he respected Huang, adding that he felt that during the Martial Law era it was not uncommon for people to do things that were uncharacteristic of them.
Asked about the issue, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said he had no comment, but described it as the DPP’s factional infighting.
However, he said that the authoritarian government during the Martial Law era was a product of the times and was not the real KMT.
Chu said democracy in Taiwan has regressed under the DPP administration.
The DPP is an “authoritarian regime” that does not allow diversity or dissent, he said.
Additional reporting by Yang Chun-hui and CNA
BLUE WAVE: The KMT’s Chiang Wan-an defeated the DPP’s Chen Shih-chung and is to become Taipei mayor, while President Tsai Ing-wen stepped down as DPP chairperson after many of the party’s candidates, handpicked by the leadership, performed poorly The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday flipped key mayoral seats in Taipei, Taoyuan and Keelung, and won control of 13 out of 22 cities and counties in the nine-in-one local elections. President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) last night resigned as Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairperson over a poor showing by the party’s candidates, who were handpicked by the DPP leadership rather than chosen through primaries. The Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) won its first high-profile race with Hsinchu mayoral candidate Ann Kao (高虹安) defeating Shen Hui-hung (沈慧虹) of the DPP with 45.02 percent of the vote to Shen’s 35.68 percent. Voters were choosing more than
UNDETERRED: The US chip designer’s plan showed that Taiwan remains attractive for investment by global companies despite cross-strait tensions, Wang Mei-hua said US graphics chip designer Nvidia Corp is planning to relocate its Hong Kong-based logistics center to Taiwan, Minister of Economic Affairs Wang Mei-hua (王美花) said on Wednesday. The government had been in discussions with Nvidia regarding tax incentives to facilitate the move since last year, Wang said in an interview with the Central News Agency, adding that the two sides had reached a consensus. Wang did not provide details about the timetable for the move or the planned tax arrangements for Nvidia. The relocation would boost the local economy, as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is a major supplier of graphics processing
Kaohsiung police last week busted a money laundering operation suspected of seeking to interfere in tomorrow’s local elections. The operation was allegedly headed by a man surnamed Lee (李), who had received NT$9.5 billion (US$306.18 million) from China over the past six months, Kaohsiung police said yesterday, adding that Lee’s ring is suspected to be part of a larger Chinese effort to interfere in the elections and support pro-China candidates. Officers arrested Lee, 35, and his girlfriend, searched his mansion, and seized the money he had allegedly received from China and three luxury vehicles, police said. The operation was disguised as an online
‘NEWEST’: The company’s Arizona plant is to produce 5-nanometer chips in the initial stage and would later manufacture 3-nanometer chips, Morris Chang said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) founder Morris Chang (張忠謀) yesterday confirmed that the company plans to produce its most advanced 3-nanometer chips in the US as part of the company’s phase 2 plan at its plant in Phoenix, Arizona. The 91-year-old entrepreneur, who has been appointed as Taiwan’s envoy to APEC six times, yesterday morning held a news conference at the Presidential Office Building to discuss his delegation’s accomplishments at this year’s APEC Economic Leaders’ Week in Bangkok, which ended on Saturday. He was asked whether TSMC has plans to build advanced chips in the US. “TSMC’s plant in Arizona is
RSS