A petition signed by Environmental Protection Administration Deputy Minister Thomas Chan (詹順貴) protesting the demolition of a farmers’ market by Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has sparked a war of words between Chan and DPP Taipei City Councilor Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑), who accused Chan of “stabbing his allies in the back.”
Chan, a veteran social and environmental campaigner, earlier this month said on Facebook that he had signed the petition to protest Chen’s demolition of the market in Kaohsiung’s Sanmin District (三民) and to urge the Kaohsiung City Government to respect human rights in its decisionmaking processes.
“After reading a lot of information and comparing the penetrating questions raised by a local self-help group and the Kaohsiung City Government’s ambiguous replies, I decided to break a political taboo by signing the petition with my real name and my title as EPA deputy minister, even though that was not required,” Chan said.
The petition calls the demolition a “reverberation of an authoritarian government where high-ranking officials call the shots on all development plans.”
“Could the demolition not have been carried out by a democratic procedure?” Chan said. “Even if I agreed with Chen’s reasoning and visions for the project, I could not approve of the procedure.”
Liang yesterday accused Chan of being a backstabber.
“[Chan] wants to serve as an official and show people that he is a conscientious social activist. He works for the DPP administration and yet he has stabbed his allies in the back,” Liang said. “It is commendable to hold on to your ideals on social activism, but you cannot have the best of both worlds. Are you not tired of being two-faced?”
In response, Chan said: “Does being an official mean that one should not have a clear conscience? Were Councilor Liang’s comments based on an affinity for a monarchy? Let us leave the judgement to society.”
Liang said that Chan was either attempting to grab the limelight or intentionally hurting the DPP’s image.
He lauded Chen for having the courage to tackle the issue of the farmers’ market, which he said had caused problems in the area for 40 years.
The Kaohsiung City Government on Sept. 1 deployed police to the market and tore it down, despite a sit-in by local residents, who said that they would be forced to relocate in the wake of the demolition.
Chen said the market was located in a flood-prone area and that it often caused traffic congestion on Shihcyuan Road.
She said that although 21 of the 120 households living closest to the market opposed the demolition, she had made a “tough decision” for the greater good.
The city government would offer subsidies to the affected residents and help them relocate, Chen said, adding that the market would be rebuilt in a location with flood-prevention facilities.
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