Opinions were mixed yesterday over the kneeling in public of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (
First Soong knelt with his wife at a rally in Taichung. Shortly after Lien and his wife prostrated themselves at a rally in Taipei.
It was the third time Soong has knelt in public, while it was Lien's first performance. Lien, however, stole the show.
"It is a very touching scene," KMT Legislator Apollo Chen (陳學聖) said. Chen who participated in the rally said he had not known about the act beforehand, and only saw it on TV afterwards.
Emile Sheng (盛治仁), an associate professor of political science at Soochow University, said that the kneeling might be positive for the pan-blue camp, and was the most important moment in the rally.
"If the kneeling today was just Soong again it might have had a negative effect. But this time Lien and Soong both knelt down to kiss the earth, and the meaning becomes different," Sheng said.
"Lien and Soong's show of their love for Taiwan is not less than the pan-green camp supporters', and counters the pan-green camp's appeal in the `228 Hand-in-hand rally.' I believe the act was pre-planned, and that they may have moved pan-blue supporters."
Meanwhile Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明), a political analyst and an assistant fellow of politics at Academia Sinica, thought that Lien's kneeling was, in fact, impromptu damage control.
"If it had only been Soong who knelt, then it would have brought negative effects. But Lien's prostrating himself made Soong's act not so prominent," he said.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) politicians showed contempt for the pan-blue ticket's double act.
"Soong kneeling before Lien showed again that he was trying to capture the limelight, to obtain more political clout in preparation for a post-election power struggle," DPP campaign spokesman Wu Nai-jen (吳乃仁) said.
"He has been trying to obtain more power even before the election takes place, and this kind of act cannot get the voters' trust," he said.
Soong's first public kneeling happened on Dec. 5, 2002 during the Taipei mayoral election campaign. He knelt down at a campaign rally in Taipei's Ta-an Forest Park in the evening, asking the voters to give Taipei Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) a second term.
He knelt again about one year later, on Nov. 9, 2003, when he visited Yunlin County Commissioner Chang Jung-wei (
Soong got emotional and knelt down after he talked with Chang about a water-resources budget cut by the central government.
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
RSS