A meeting on Monday to discuss reconstruction efforts in Hualien County’s flood-hit Guangfu Township (光復) descended into chaos after being interrupted by the county council speaker, who protested not being invited.
The meeting, held at the Dahua Activity Center in Guangfu, was organized by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁) and Sra Kacaw.
It was attended by Hualien County Government and township officials, as well as several county councilors. The session was intended to focus on a special reconstruction bill under legislative review.
Photo courtesy of a member of the public
While some residents were allowed into the hall, many others gathered outside, saying they had not been notified and demanding either to join the discussion or have it moved outdoors.
As the event got underway, tensions escalated after independent Hualien County Council Speaker Chang Chun (張峻) burst into the hall and kicked the table where Fu was sitting, demanding to know why he had not been invited.
“You think you can walk all over the residents of Guangfu?” Chang shouted several times.
Initially calm, Fu stood up and replied: “The legislature is here. Who is bullying Guangfu residents? We are here having a meeting.”
However, moments later, he lost his temper and yelled at police officers: “Mobster, criminal in the act, arrest him, arrest him.”
He also threatened to sue Chang for what he called “violent behavior.”
After the interruption, the crowd outside began knocking on the windows and chanting their demands for the officials to come out, saying: “We are disaster victims, we want to be heard.”
Later, Chang entered the hall a second time and sat down directly across from Fu.
After gaining Fu’s permission to speak, Chang said he wanted to question why multiple county government officials had been invited but not him, a Guangfu resident and a “victim” of the disaster himself.
Before leaving, Chang told the crowd outside that he would demand that the county government add reconstruction funds to its annual budget before it is reviewed by the county council.
Hualien County Commissioner Hsu Chen-wen (徐榛蔚), Fu’s wife and a fellow KMT member, heads the county government, while Chang leads a faction of independents who make up a plurality in the county council.
Yesterday, Fu appeared at the Hualien County Prosecutors’ Office to file a criminal complaint against Chang for intimidation and causing bodily harm.
Chang told the Central News Agency he plans to countersue Fu for defamation.
On Sept. 23, heavy rain from Typhoon Ragasa caused the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) barrier lake to overflow, sending torrents of water and mud through Guangfu.
The flash flood killed 19 people and inundated homes and businesses with debris.
LOW RISK: Most nations do not extradite people accused of political crimes, and the UN says extradition can only happen if the act is a crime in both countries, an official said China yesterday issued wanted notices for two Taiwanese influencers, accusing them of committing “separatist acts” by criticizing Beijing, amid broadening concerns over China’s state-directed transnational repression. The Quanzhou Public Security Bureau in a notice posted online said police are offering a reward of up to 25,000 yuan (US$3,523) for information that could contribute to the investigation or apprehension of pro-Taiwanese independence YouTuber Wen Tzu-yu (溫子渝),who is known as Pa Chiung (八炯) online, and rapper Chen Po-yuan (陳柏源). Wen and Chen are suspected of spreading content that supported secession from China, slandered Chinese policies that benefit Taiwanese and discrimination against Chinese spouses of
PROMOTION: Travelers who want a free stopover must book their flights with designated travel agents, such as Lion Travel, Holiday Tours, Cola Tour and Life Tours Air Canada yesterday said it is offering Taiwanese travelers who are headed to North America free stopovers if they transit though airports in Japan and South Korea. The promotion was launched in response to a potential rise in demand for flights to North America in June and July next year, when the US, Canada and Mexico are scheduled to jointly host the FIFA World Cup, Air Canada said. Air Canada offers services to 13 of the 16 host cities of the tournament’s soccer games, including Toronto and Vancouver; Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey in Mexico; Atlanta, Georgia; Boston; Dallas; Houston;
The US approved the possible sale to Taiwan of fighter jet spare and repair parts for US$330 million, the Pentagon said late yesterday, marking the first such potential transaction since US President Donald Trump took office in January. "The proposed sale will improve the recipient's capability to meet current and future threats by maintaining the operational readiness of the recipient's fleet of F-16, C-130," and other aircraft, the Pentagon said in a statement. Trump previously said that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) has told him he would not invade Taiwan while the Republican leader is in office. The announcement of the possible arms
ALIGNED THINKING: Taiwan and Japan have a mutual interest in trade, culture and engineering, and can work together for stability, Cho Jung-tai said Taiwan and Japan are two like-minded countries willing to work together to form a “safety barrier” in the Indo-Pacific region, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday said at the opening ceremony of the 35th Taiwan-Japan Modern Engineering and Technology Symposium in Taipei. Taiwan and Japan are close geographically and closer emotionally, he added. Citing the overflowing of a barrier lake in the Mataian River (馬太鞍溪) in September, Cho said the submersible water level sensors given by Japan during the disaster helped Taiwan monitor the lake’s water levels more accurately. Japan also provided a lot of vaccines early in the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,
RSS