Wed, Sep 22, 2004 page3

• Wu under pressure prior to departure

  PARALYMPICS Two days prior to the delegation's departure, the IPC sent a letter outlining limits to the first lady's activities, ostensibly due to pressure from China

  • By Huang Tai-lin / STAFF REPORTER
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  President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday revealed that Beijing had worked to obstruct first lady Wu Shu-jen's (吳淑珍) trip to Athens before she even arrived in the Greek capital.

  Chen made the remarks at a news conference at CKS International Airport, which was held shortly after the arrival of Wu and accompanying staff and reporters from a nine-day stay in Athens.

  

  First lady Wu Shu-jen shakes hands with the president of Taiwan's Olympic committee, Thomas Huang as she is welcomed by the president, vice president and other top officials at Chiang Kai-shek International Airport yesterday.

  PHOTO: TONY YAO, TAIPEI TIMES

  Noting Wu's frail condition, Chen said he had been concerned about the strain the journey might pose on her from the moment she decided to accompany the Taiwan Paralympic Team to Athens.

  Wu, who is paralyzed from the waist down after being hit by a truck in an assassination attempt in 1985, had also mentioned prior to the trip that she was suffering from hemorrhoids.

  "Little did we know, it turned out that A-jen's physical status would not be the cause of our worry," the president said, calling Wu by her nickname, "but rather the other side of the Strait, which hoped to prevent Wu from attending the Paralympic Games as head of Team Taiwan."

  Two days before Wu and Team Taiwan departed for Athens, Chen said, they received two letters from the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) stating three conditions. These included asking Wu to revoke her position as head of Taiwan Paralympic team, not to host any open social banquets and not to hold news conferences or receive interviews with international media.

  In the end they decided to go ahead with the trip to Athens and work to protect their rights on the spot, Chen said.

  "Yet we still ran into problems when we arrived [in Athens]," said Chen, referring to the hoopla surrounding Wu's status when the IPC, supposedly due to pressure from Beijing, announced last Tuesday that it had replaced Wu as head of the delegation with Linda Chen (陳李稠), and had downgraded Wu's NPC card, the highest-level official pass for the event, to the less prestigious "transferable guest" card.

  After a protest lodged by the delegation, the IPC and Team Taiwan representatives reached an understanding that Wu could attend all relevant activities in her capacity as head of the team and that both sides agreed there would be no further discussion about the issue -- a solution that saved face for everyone.

  Expressing gratitude for effort by staff and that the whole thing had come to a happy ending, Chen said that "not only did we work to uphold our national dignity ... but we also were able to do all we planned to do."

  For instance, Wu got to keep her NPC card, visited the athletes village, hosted a banquet for foreign dignitaries and held interviews with the international press.

  Expressing gratitude for the Greek government's assistance and the security it provided, Chen suggested the National Council on Physical Fitness and Sports re-assess its awards based on the principle of fairness for paralympic athletes who win medals in the games.

  Taiwanese regulations offer far more prize money to Olympic medalists than their Paralympic counterparts

  Wu said she was happy to have led the Taiwan delegation to Athens and that despite some disturbance, Taiwan had still been able to take part in the games.
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