Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) today said he would attend the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) rally on Taipei’s Ketagalan Boulevard tomorrow, calling on citizens to join to support democracy and justice.
KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) announced the demonstration in response to investigations of the party’s alleged use of forged signatures in recall campaigns targeting Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) politicians.
The party has previously said that over 50,000 people signed up to attend the protest to "protect democracy" and oppose Lai.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Ahead of the rally, the Taipei City Police Department said yesterday that it has assigned 400 police officers to maintain security at the event, with more on call if needed.
That prosecutors are only pursuing recall fraud charges against KMT members and supporters cast doubt on their impartiality, Han said today in a media appearance at the Legislative Yuan. Han was alluding to the fact there are numerous recall campaigns against both KMT and DPP legislators.
The recall movement is one of “three knives hanging over the heads” of the Taiwanese public, along with the new US tariff policy and the Chinese Communist Party’s nearby military exercises, he said.
People from all walks of life are nervous, Han added.
In response to Han’s confirmation that he would attend tomorrow, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) said that the Legislative Speaker should be neutral and non-partisan, as it was in the past.
Han’s participation in the demonstration and his attacks on Taiwan’s judicial system show he is unable to fulfill the responsibilities of the role, Wu said.
Han should maintain his neutrality and support the public’s right to recall politicians, rather than allow the Legislative Yuan to become a supporter of fraud and document forgery, DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said.
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) and Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) have also said they would attend the demonstration.
Taiwan People's Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) has also expressed his intention to make an appearance.
Chu has accused President William Lai (賴清德) of using the recall movement to institute a dictatorship and eliminate the KMT.
Under Lai’s time in power which began last May, former vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) and former Taiwan People's Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) have been arrested, Chu said.
KMT offices have been searched one by one this year, Chu added.
Continuing the comparison between Lai and dictatorships, Chu said that if Lai were to succeed in removing the KMT, he would become like an emperor.
Additional reporting by Huang Cheng-chia and Lee Wen-hsin
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Monday called for greater cooperation between Taiwan, Lithuania and the EU to counter threats to information security, including attacks on undersea cables and other critical infrastructure. In a speech at Vilnius University in the Lithuanian capital, Tsai highlighted recent incidents in which vital undersea cables — essential for cross-border data transmission — were severed in the Taiwan Strait and the Baltic Sea over the past year. Taiwanese authorities suspect Chinese sabotage in the incidents near Taiwan’s waters, while EU leaders have said Russia is the likely culprit behind similar breaches in the Baltic. “Taiwan and our European
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not
LIKE-MINDED COUNTRIES: Despite the threats from outside, Taiwan and Lithuania thrived and developed their economies, former president Tsai Ing-wen said Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) on Saturday thanked Lithuania for its support of Taiwan, saying that both countries are united as partners in defending democracy. Speaking at a reception organized by the Lithuania-Taiwan Parliamentary Friendship Group welcoming her on her first visit to the Baltic state, Tsai said that while she was president from 2016 to last year, many Lithuanian “friends” visited Taiwan. “And I told myself I have to be here. I am very happy that I am here, a wonderful country and wonderful people,” Tsai said. Taiwan and Lithuania are in similar situations as both are neighbors to authoritarian countries, she
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) is to visit the UK during her ongoing European trip, which originally included only Lithuania and Denmark, her office said today. Tsai departed Taiwan for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark, marking her second visit to the continent since her two-term presidency ended in May last year. Her office issued a statement today saying that Tsai would also visit the UK "for a few days," during which she is to meet with UK politicians and Taiwanese professionals, and visit academic and research institutions. Following Tsai's stop in Denmark, she is to visit the
RSS