The campaign to protect Taiwan Statebuilding Party Legislator Chen Po-wei (陳柏惟) from a recall vote finished its final weekend with supporters’ groups and pan-green camp politicians attending an event in Taichung yesterday.
With the recall vote scheduled for Saturday, attendees gathered in the morning at Qingshui Zushi Temple in Longjing District (龍井), most of them joining Chen in the “100 Hours March, Walk the Final Mile for Democracy” event.
Among the groups at the event were the Humanistic Education Foundation, Taiwan Society, Taiwan Youth Foundation, Deng Liberty Foundation and Union of Taiwan Teachers.
Photo: Ho Tsung-han, Taipei Times
“There has been a series of revenge recall campaigns,” Humanistic Education Foundation executive director Joanna Feng (馮喬蘭) said. “Basically, they have all attacked civic groups and we must oppose these vicious, politically motivated groups that are trying to wreck the foundations of our democratic system.”
Local Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) city councilors and DPP lawmakers from Taichung, including Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) and Ho Hsin-chun (何欣純), joined Chen on the walk yesterday.
Chen has done a lot at the legislature and in service of his local constituents in the past two years, Tsai said.
“This revenge recall is based on lies and smears on Chen’s character,” Tsai said. “Character assassination is the opposition’s means of inciting hatred and grabbing power.”
Taiwan Association of University Professors chairman Hsu Wen-tang (許文堂) said that the recall campaign “is groups rousing up hatred and disharmony warring against people upholding justice and democratic values.”
The recall effort, which has been backed by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) politicians, was initiated by Yang Wen-yuan (楊文元), who said he voted for Chen in January last year, but regrets that choice.
Chen’s opponents say he has behaved outrageously in the legislature and supported the government’s decision to lift a ban on imports of pork containing residue of the feed additive ractopamine.
There are 291,122 eligible voters in Chen’s constituency, Taichung’s Second District.
For a recall vote to pass, at least 25 percent of eligible voters — or 72,781 in Chen’s case — must vote in favor of it, and they must outnumber those who vote against it.
Additional reporting by CNA
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
RSS