An upcoming demonstration organized by the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) to protest what it calls “unfairness and a miscarriage of justice” is seeking to destroy Taiwan’s judiciary system and provide cover for corrupt politicians, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday.
TPP Acting Chairman and Legislator Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) on Friday last week announced the party would protest in Taipei on Saturday to “demand judicial justice from the government” and to show solidarity with the party’s former chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲).
Ko, indicted on Dec. 26 on charges of bribery and corruption in connection with a real-estate deal during his second term as Taipei mayor from 2018 to 2022, was detained again during his third bail hearing on Thursday last week.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) on Friday wrote on social media that he would “give his full support” to those expressing their discontent with the DPP on Saturday.
DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) at a news conference yesterday said the planned protest “is for opposition parties to shield corrupt officials and undermine judicial independence.”
“Numerous core figures and politicians of the KMT and the TPP have been implicated in corruption and bribery. The majority of such cases resulted in a conviction and prison terms,” Wu said. “They should reflect on them and examine serious corruption within their parties, but instead they are mobilizing to attack the justice system.”
The two parties are working together to justify their corruption, he said.
The protest aims to deter the judiciary, prevent it from investigating corruption and personal profiteering by KMT and TPP politicians, Wu said.
New Taipei City Councilor Cho Kuan-ting (卓冠廷) of the DPP referred to recent corruption cases including Hsinchu County Commissioner Yang Wen-ke (楊文科), Yilan County Commissioner Lin Zi-miao (林姿妙), Taipei city councilors Angela Ying (應曉薇) and Chen Chung-wen (陳重文), and former Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao (高虹安).
“They [the KMT and the TPP] want to conceal the real corruption from public eyes,” Cho said. “This protest is a big joke.”
Additional reporting by CNA
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
A Japan Self-Defense Forces vessel entered the Taiwan Strait yesterday, Japanese media reported. After passing through the Taiwan Strait, the Ikazuchi was to proceed to the South China Sea to take part in a joint military exercise with the US and the Philippines, the reports said. Japan Self-Defense Force vessels were first reported to have passed through the strait in September, 2024, with two further transits taking place in February and June last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Yesterday’s transit also marked the first time since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office that a Japanese warship has been sent through the Taiwan
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
ANOTHER OPTION: The 13-year-old, whose residency status was revoked for holding a Chinese passport, could still apply for residency on humanitarian grounds, the government said The Executive Yuan has rejected an appeal from a 13-year-old Chinese student surnamed Lu (陸), whose permanent residency was revoked after immigration officers discovered he held a Chinese passport. Lu in December 2023 applied to settle in Taiwan to be with his mother, surnamed Lin (林), who is a Taiwan resident, an appeal decision released this month by the Executive Yuan showed. Lin settled in Taiwan after marrying a Taiwanese man in 2003, but the two divorced in 2011, and after marrying a Chinese man, she had Lu, the Executive Yuan’s appeals committee said. Lu’s application was approved in December 2024, and in
RSS