Members of the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday greeted the return of President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) campaign manager King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport by putting up banners accusing King of crossing the line with remarks he made in the US.
King, a member of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) delegation, left for the US on Sept. 9 to solicit support for Ma’s re--election bid.
During a trip that took the KMT delegation to Washington, New York, Boston, Houston, San Francisco and Los Angeles, King was outspoken on cross-strait issues, such as whether Ma would visit China if elected to a second term and whether a peace accord would be signed with Beijing.
Photo: Yao Kai-shiou, Taipei Times
The remarks by King, who does not hold any official position in the government, prompted criticism from the pan-green camp, as well as some from the pan-blue camp.
Led by director of the TSU’s Taipei chapter Chen Teh-hsien (陳德賢), the group in the airport lobby chanted slogans and waved signs that read “Welcome back, Gangster King” — an apparent reference to comments made by American Institute in Taiwan Director William Stanton as quoted in a US cable released by WikiLeaks as having described King’s appearance as reminiscent of the “dapper gangsters frequently seen in Hong Kong films.”
In response, King, who arrived in Taipei early in the morning, said he hoped the accusers could provide evidence in their accusations against him, adding that he hoped people would avoid a “war of words” by smearing others.
Democratic Progressive Party Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) also concluded her nine-day visit to the US and arrived in Taiwan yesterday evening.
During her visit, Tsai and her entourage visited Boston, New York, Houston, San Francisco and Los Angeles, during which she met with senior US officials and attended rallies to drum up support for her presidential bid among Taiwanese residing in the US.
According to her campaign office, Tsai is scheduled to visit Japan sometime next month.
Ma’s re-election campaign office spokesperson Ma Wei-kuo (馬瑋國) yesterday said that King was also planning on visiting Japan sometime next month.
Additional Reporting by Staff Writer
A crowd of over 200 people gathered outside the Taipei District Court as two sisters indicted for abusing a 1-year-old boy to death attended a preliminary hearing in the case yesterday afternoon. The crowd held up signs and chanted slogans calling for aggravated penalties in child abuse cases and asking for no bail and “capital punishment.” They also held white flowers in memory of the boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), who was allegedly tortured to death by the sisters in December 2023. The boy died four months after being placed in full-time foster care with the
Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release. While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said. Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase
A Taiwanese woman on Sunday was injured by a small piece of masonry that fell from the dome of St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican during a visit to the church. The tourist, identified as Hsu Yun-chen (許芸禎), was struck on the forehead while she and her tour group were near Michelangelo’s sculpture Pieta. Hsu was rushed to a hospital, the group’s guide to the church, Fu Jing, said yesterday. Hsu was found not to have serious injuries and was able to continue her tour as scheduled, Fu added. Mathew Lee (李世明), Taiwan’s recently retired ambassador to the Holy See, said he met
The Shanlan Express (山嵐號), or “Mountain Mist Express,” is scheduled to launch on April 19 as part of the centennial celebration of the inauguration of the Taitung Line. The tourism express train was renovated from the Taiwan Railway Corp’s EMU500 commuter trains. It has four carriages and a seating capacity of 60 passengers. Lion Travel is arranging railway tours for the express service. Several news outlets were invited to experience the pilot tour on the new express train service, which is to operate between Hualien Railway Station and Chihshang (池上) Railway Station in Taitung County. It would also be the first tourism service
RSS