Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) yesterday expressed her willingness to have a TV debate with her pan-blue counterpart, vice presidential candidate James Soong (宋楚瑜).
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) campaign headquarters will negotiate with the pan-blue camp today about the arrangements for holding TV debates between both camps' presidential candidates, President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) chairman Lien Chan (連戰).
PHOTO: YEH CHIH-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
Lu yesterday urged the DPP headquarters to help her arrange a vice-presidential candidate TV debate.
"While the public is accusing both camps of running a negative campaign and urges all candidates to set a good example while campaigning, I must stress that I am the only one who continues to promote policies concerning the nation's future," Lu said yesterday during the launch of her new book, The Great Future of Taiwan.
"It seems that everyone just forgets about me and my efforts to establish a clean, esteemed and honorable campaign has been completely ignored by the media, which just want to grab sensational and dirty issues."
"So, I am expecting that the media now will facilitate the opportunity to allow I and Mr. Soong to expound our ideas and visions," she said.
Lu said that the Central Election Committee only arranged a TV speech for the two vice-presidential candidates on Feb. 28, which is the day she and all DPP members will join the Taiwan Solidarity Union's (TSU) "1 million hand-in-hand" effort.
"I hope that the committee will be understanding and postpone the TV speech to the next day," she said.
During yesterday's conference, Lu again advocated creating a Democratic Pacific Union and enhancing the development of an "ocean culture" by uniting the countries of the Asia-Pacific region.
She said that Taiwan's "soft power," which integrates Taiwan's outstanding achievements in technology, democracy, human rights and especially maintaining peace despite China's long-term military threats, are the best weapons to use against the Beijing authority's "Great China Empire" intentions.
Asking to comment on whether the international community's concern about President Chen's referendum plan will benefit the DPP's campaign or not, Lu said that the trend of internationalization of the "Taiwan issue" or the "cross-strait issue" will help maintain Taiwan's security.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
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Former Taiwan People’s Party chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) may apply to visit home following the death of his father this morning, the Taipei Detention Center said. Ko’s father, Ko Cheng-fa (柯承發), passed away at 8:40am today at the Hsinchu branch of National Taiwan University Hospital. He was 94 years old. The center said Ko Wen-je was welcome to apply, but declined to say whether it had already received an application. The center also provides psychological counseling to people in detention as needed, it added, also declining to comment on Ko Wen-je’s mental state. Ko Wen-je is being held in detention as he awaits trial
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