Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before.
Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute.
Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat.
Photo: CNA
Lee said today that this is a serious international scandal and called on Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) to give a statement.
Wearing a Nazi armband symbolizes racial discrimination and persecution of human rights, he said.
As chair of the KMT, Chu should apologize for Sung’s actions, Lee said, adding that if he does not apologize, it shows support for his behavior.
Chu this morning said that various forms of protest are being used to satirize the DPP’s authoritarianism.
People have begun calling the DPP “green communists,” showing their opposition to unjust recalls and the DPP’s tyranny, he said.
DPP Legislator Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) said on Facebook that this is no longer a domestic political issue, but an international issue and the KMT should sincerely apologize.
The German Institute Taipei on Facebook said it was “shocked” to see the use of Nazi symbolism used in connection with political aims.
It condemned the incident “in the strongest possible terms,” and thanked the Taiwanese public for their concern.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also condemned the "extremely inappropriate" way of expressing an opinion, calling on the public to refrain from actions that offend the people of other nations and tarnish Taiwan's image.
Nazi ideology led to the Holocaust, and related symbols are reviled around the world, including in Taiwan, it said.
Prosecutors said in a news release that they are investigating alleged forgery in recall petitions against DPP legislators Lee, Su Chiao-hui (蘇巧慧), Wu Chi-ming (吳琪銘) and Chang Hung-lu (張宏陸).
After analyzing petition information from the Central Election Commission and New Taipei City Election Commission, they said they found evidence of possible forgery and contraventions of the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法).
They directed the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau to search 30 locations, including residences and party offices of suspects in Banciao (板橋), Sanchong (三重) and Yingge (鶯歌) districts.
As of yesterday evening, more than 20 people had been brought in for questioning, local media reported.
A year-long renovation of Taipei’s Bangka Park (艋舺公園) began yesterday, as city workers fenced off the site and cleared out belongings left by homeless residents who had been living there. Despite protests from displaced residents, a city official defended the government’s relocation efforts, saying transitional housing has been offered. The renovation of the park in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), near Longshan Temple (龍山寺), began at 9am yesterday, as about 20 homeless people packed their belongings and left after being asked to move by city personnel. Among them was a 90-year-old woman surnamed Wang (王), who last week said that she had no plans
China might accelerate its strategic actions toward Taiwan, the South China Sea and across the first island chain, after the US officially entered a military conflict with Iran, as Beijing would perceive Washington as incapable of fighting a two-front war, a military expert said yesterday. The US’ ongoing conflict with Iran is not merely an act of retaliation or a “delaying tactic,” but a strategic military campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and reshaping the regional order in the Middle East, said National Defense University distinguished adjunct lecturer Holmes Liao (廖宏祥), former McDonnell Douglas Aerospace representative in Taiwan. If
TO BE APPEALED: The environment ministry said coal reduction goals had to be reached within two months, which was against the principle of legitimate expectation The Taipei High Administrative Court on Thursday ruled in favor of the Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau in its administrative litigation against the Ministry of Environment for the rescission of a NT$18 million fine (US$609,570) imposed by the bureau on the Taichung Power Plant in 2019 for alleged excess coal power generation. The bureau in November 2019 revised what it said was a “slip of the pen” in the text of the operating permit granted to the plant — which is run by Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) — in October 2017. The permit originally read: “reduce coal use by 40 percent from Jan.
‘SPEY’ REACTION: Beijing said its Eastern Theater Command ‘organized troops to monitor and guard the entire process’ of a Taiwan Strait transit China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early yesterday, 61 of which crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait. It was not clear why so many planes were scrambled, said the Ministry of National Defense, which tabulated the flights. The aircraft were sent in two separate tranches, the ministry said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday “confirmed and welcomed” a transit by the British Royal Navy’s HMS Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, through the Taiwan Strait a day earlier. The ship’s transit “once again [reaffirmed the Strait’s] status as international waters,” the foreign ministry said. “Such transits by
RSS