The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) today said it does not support martial law, after its caucus’ social media post last night comparing the situation in Taiwan’s legislature to South Korea stirred controversy.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol late last night announced martial law, but rescinded the order after the National Assembly voted unanimously to reject his declaration.
After the order was made, the DPP caucus posted on Threads saying that the party supported Yoon’s fight against the North Korean threat.
Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times
"The South Korean parliament has been manipulated by North Korean forces," said the post by "lydppcaucus," an account run by the party's caucus.
"South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol announced emergency martial law nationwide to protect the free constitutional system," the post said. "Have no doubt, we who are Team Taiwan are every second and every minute opposing global dark and evil forces encroaching on [Taiwan].”
The post also suggested that opposition parties had repeatedly obstructed national security proposals, "unconstitutionally expanded" their powers and cut the defense budget, among other claims.
This post was deleted after 20 minutes, after which the DPP said in another post that it was an attempt to “share international information.”
The party had no intention of supporting martial law, it said, adding that opposition lawmakers should stop exaggerating their claims.
"The DPP was a political party established during [Taiwan's] Martial Law period," the post said. "It deeply knows the harm that martial law has done to democratic societies."
In a post on Facebook, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) accused the DPP of exploiting an international crisis, supporting martial law and smearing the opposition.
The DPP took advantage of South Korea’s suffering to discredit opposition parties’ normal legislative actions in reviewing the budget and passing amendments, it said, calling on President William Lai (賴總統) to apologize.
The KMT also asked for the government to focus on ensuring the safety of Taiwanese in South Korea, including assessing the need for evacuation if necessary.
The DPP in a statement this morning said that Taiwan’s more than three-decade Martial Law era was imposed by the KMT.
The DPP was formed in opposition to martial law and has no intention of ever supporting it, it said.
DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) told reporters it would be inappropriate to comment too much on other nations’ internal affairs and start unnecessary conflicts.
However, the caucus would review its social media policies to prevent further issues and potential accusations from the KMT, she added.
Additional reporting by Lee Wen-hsin
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