A native Taiwanese holding a German passport campaigned yesterday for an independent legislative candidate, which raised questions about whether foreigners can participate in local campaign activities.
Tu Cheng Chun-chu (涂鄭春菊), an important witness in the murder case of navy captain Yin Ching-feng (尹清楓) whose 1992 murder is linked to the Lafayette frigate purchasing scandal, campaigned for independent legislative candidate Hsieh Tsung-min (謝聰敏) Saturday. Tu's attendance attracted attention from the Central Election Commission's Taipei City bureau, which filmed Tu campaigning for Hsieh.
According to the Public Officials Election and Recall Law, there are no stipulations that prevent the participation of foreigners in local elections. Foreigners participating in campaign activities would, however, violate the Immigration Law (入出國及移民法), since participating in a campaign would violate the stated purpose of entry, officials from the Central Election Commission said.
Tu held a press conference yesterday to clarify that she is not in danger of being deported, following local news reports that Tu could be deported if she is found to have violated immigration laws.
"I haven't received any messages from the authorities calling for my deportation. But I don't understand why they are only targeting me, especially when there are others doing the same thing. If this is a country that values freedom and democracy, then they should not violate my right to free speech," Tu said during a press conference.
She further explained that because Hsieh had told her that there are no regulations banning foreigners from participating in campaigns, she stumped for Hsieh during a weekend rally.
Meanwhile, Chiu Chang (
Alice King (
"She is not Japanese; she holds a Taiwan passport," said Stephen Lee (
Foreigners are not allowed to campaign for any specific candidate. In the 1998 election for Taipei mayor, foreign campaigners for the two candidates -- Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
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