Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) yesterday warned Beijing to keep its hands off the presidential election, one day after Shanghai authorities banned KMT supporters from campaigning in that city.
Lien told a campaign rally in Taipei that China's behavior in the run-up to the 1996 and 2000 presidential elections had aroused deep antipathy.
"I would like to ask the Chinese authorities not to interfere in Taiwan's election," he said.
He dismissed President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) allegation that the KMT has won favor from China and Taiwanese fugitives living there because the party is on their side.
Lien called on Chen not to manipulate anti-China sentiment by emphasizing Beijing's interference in the election.
"Chen should instead tell the people what he has done over the past four years," Lien said.
Zhang Mingqing (張銘清), a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) of China's State Council, said yesterday that China-based Taiwanese businesspeople need to obtain official permission to organize campaign groups.
"The TAO is not the agency to authorize such activities ? So far, the government has not received any application to form campaign groups," he said, commenting on Shanghai's ban on a political meeting by supporters of the pan-blue camp.
Former justice minister Liao Cheng-hao (廖正豪) was one of the organizers of that meeting.
Meanwhile, Cabinet Spokesman Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) criticized Lien and his running mate, People First Party (PFP) Chairman James Soong (宋楚瑜), yesterday for sending Liao to solicit the votes of China-based Taiwanese.
According to Lin, Liao began his campaigning activities in China after the pan-blue camp obtained Beijing's consent. Lin said that the TAO had allowed the pan-blue camp to set up a supporters association near its office in Beijing and he urged China and the pan-blue camp to unveil their "secret deal."
"The TAO should explain why it did not prohibit the establishment of the supporters association and only voiced opposition to it after it opened," Lin said.
He said it appears Beijing is trying to influence the election by allowing Taiwanese fugitives to campaign for the pan-blue camp. China should repatriate these criminals to prove it is not trying affect the election, Lin said.
Zhang said China would neither comment nor interfere with the election, rebuffing criticism from Taipei that Beijing has plotted a number of events with Taiwanese businesspeople to influence the poll. He also denied that the TAO had any role in former Tuntex chairman Chen Yu-hao's (
Media reports have suggested the revelations were partly encouraged by mid-ranking TAO officials. Zhang stressed it was the Chen Yu-hao's idea to disclose the donation.
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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