About 500 protesters demonstrated on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei yesterday, vowing to recall President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and lawmakers in the pan-green camp.
The protesters rallied around several themes, accusing Tsai of rigging the Jan. 11 presidential election, that she “bought” her doctorate at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and that Tsai and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers who pander to her should be recalled.
Democracy Watch Alliance convener Huang Cheng-chung (黃正忠) said that if the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) does not take action on the death of KMT Kaohsiung City Council Speaker Hsu Kun-yuan (許崑源), he would quit the party.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Hsu, who strongly supported Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜), was found dead after falling from his 17th-floor apartment in Kaohsiung on the night of June 6, several hours after the city’s voters cast their ballots in favor of recalling Han.
Huang said that Hsu died a wrongful death, and that yesterday’s rally sought in part to redress the injustice perpetrated against him.
If the KMT “does not have the guts,” he would leave the party and run in the Kaohsiung mayoral by-election to avenge Hsu, said Huang, who is from Kaohsiung.
China Unification Promotion Party (CUPP) chairman Chang An-le (張安樂), who also joined the demonstration, said that Hsu was one of the two politicians in the pan-blue camp that he respected the most — the other one being Jenn Lann Temple (鎮瀾宮) chairman Yen Ching-piao (顏清標).
Han singlehandedly saved the KMT in the 2018 nine-in-one local elections with his rising popularity, but KMT heavyweights, including former KMT chairman Wu Den-yih (吳敦義), brought him down for their own gain, he said, adding that Han, who ran as the KMT’s presidential candidate in January, could have brought eight years of peace to the Taiwan Strait had he been elected.
“KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) asked us not to initiate revenge recalls, but that is exactly what we are going to do,” retired Taipei City University of Science and Technology lecturer Chou Ming-tai (周明台) said.
New Power Party Kaohsiung City Councilor Huang Jie (黃捷) and Taiwan Statebuilding Party Legislator Chen Po-wei (陳柏惟) are DPP members in all but name, Chou added.
They, along with DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) and DPP Taoyuan City Councilor Wang Hao-yu (王浩宇), are all “dregs” that must be tossed out, Chou said, adding that the four politicians — all vocal critics of Han — should be the targets of a revenge recall campaign.
The DPP has announced a Kaohsiung mayoral by-election for Aug. 15, just two months after Han was recalled, even though the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法) states that a by-election should be held within three months of a recall vote, Chou said.
“Give the DPP an inch and it will take a mile,” he said. “The only way to topple the DPP is through a full-on clash.”
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
RSS