Sean Lien (連勝文), one of former vice president Lien Chan’s (連戰) sons, was shot last night as he was campaigning for a Sinbei councilor candidate in Yonghe (永和), Taipei County. He was hit in the face and was rushed to National Taiwan University Hospital.
Yonghe police precinct said a 29-year-old man was also shot at the rally, but died on the way to a hospital.
In a press briefing at 10:05pm, the hospital said Sean Lien, was still undergoing surgery, but was not in a life-threatening situation. He was conscious when he arrived at the hospital, officials said.
Witnesses said a man burst onto the stage at Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) councilor candidate Chen Hung-yuan’s (陳鴻源) rally and fired a shot at Sean Lien shortly after he took the stage and as he was about to address the crowd. The bullet hit the left side of his face, eyewitnesses said.
A man named Lin Cheng-wei (林正偉) was quickly apprehended by police. The motive for the shooting is under investigation.
Pan-green politicans condemned the shooting, while KMT politicians condemned it as “election violence.”
Lien Chan joined Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin’s (郝龍斌) rally after visiting his son at the hospital. Choking back tears as he discussed his son, Lien Chan urged supporters to support Hau and the KMT’s other mayoral candidates.
“My son is in the hospital right now and the condition is unknown. I will say no more. May God bless Taiwan and the public,” he said.
President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who doubles as KMT chairman, later walked onto the stage amid cheers from the crowd. Ma pledged to fight against such an “unforgettable example of violence.”
Late last night, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei mayoral candidate Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) held a press conference to condemn violence, “at any time and any place.”
“We are praying for the victims,” he said. “We understand that the police have already arrested a suspect and ask them to release the truth about the incident immediately.”
However, he said political parties should avoid trying to take advantage out of the shootings, adding that he hoped “society can return to normal as soon as possible.”
DPP Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), a mayoral candidate for Sinbei City, also denounced the shootings, saying she “condemned all forms of violence” and urging supporters to remain calm and rational for today’s elections.
Labeling the shootings gang-related, Tsai said they were a “tremendous shock to everyone.”
She wished Sean Lien a fast recovery and offered her condolences to the Lien family and the family of the other victim.
The Taipei Times has learned that immediately following the shootings, government agencies began to deliver bullet-proof vests to the mayoral candidates, but it was not clear as of press time whether the candidates for councilor and borough chief posts were also getting vests.
Sean Lien is deputy director of Taipei City’s Economic Development Commission, and member of the KMT's Central Committee.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY STAFF WRITER
This report has been updated since it was first published.
ENDEAVOR MANTA: The ship is programmed to automatically return to its designated home port and would self-destruct if seized by another party The Endeavor Manta, Taiwan’s first military-specification uncrewed surface vehicle (USV) tailor-made to operate in the Taiwan Strait in a bid to bolster the nation’s asymmetric combat capabilities made its first appearance at Kaohsiung’s Singda Harbor yesterday. Taking inspiration from Ukraine’s navy, which is using USVs to force Russia’s Black Sea fleet to take shelter within its own ports, CSBC Taiwan (台灣國際造船) established a research and development unit on USVs last year, CSBC chairman Huang Cheng-hung (黃正弘) said. With the exception of the satellite guidance system and the outboard motors — which were purchased from foreign companies that were not affiliated with Chinese-funded
PERMIT REVOKED: The influencer at a news conference said the National Immigration Agency was infringing on human rights and persecuting Chinese spouses Chinese influencer “Yaya in Taiwan” (亞亞在台灣) yesterday evening voluntarily left Taiwan, despite saying yesterday morning that she had “no intention” of leaving after her residence permit was revoked over her comments on Taiwan being “unified” with China by military force. The Ministry of the Interior yesterday had said that it could forcibly deport the influencer at midnight, but was considering taking a more flexible approach and beginning procedures this morning. The influencer, whose given name is Liu Zhenya (劉振亞), departed on a 8:45pm flight from Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) to Fuzhou, China. Liu held a news conference at the airport at 7pm,
AIR SUPPORT: The Ministry of National Defense thanked the US for the delivery, adding that it was an indicator of the White House’s commitment to the Taiwan Relations Act Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) and Representative to the US Alexander Yui on Friday attended a delivery ceremony for the first of Taiwan’s long-awaited 66 F-16C/D Block 70 jets at a Lockheed Martin Corp factory in Greenville, South Carolina. “We are so proud to be the global home of the F-16 and to support Taiwan’s air defense capabilities,” US Representative William Timmons wrote on X, alongside a photograph of Taiwanese and US officials at the event. The F-16C/D Block 70 jets Taiwan ordered have the same capabilities as aircraft that had been upgraded to F-16Vs. The batch of Lockheed Martin
GRIDLOCK: The National Fire Agency’s Special Search and Rescue team is on standby to travel to the countries to help out with the rescue effort A powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand yesterday, killing at least three people in Bangkok and burying dozens when a high-rise building under construction collapsed. Footage shared on social media from Myanmar’s second-largest city showed widespread destruction, raising fears that many were trapped under the rubble or killed. The magnitude 7.7 earthquake, with an epicenter near Mandalay in Myanmar, struck at midday and was followed by a strong magnitude 6.4 aftershock. The extent of death, injury and destruction — especially in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled at the best of times —
RSS