Angered by the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) support for a rally on Saturday designed to counter his own anti-President-Chen-Shui-bian (
"People power, which follows no tactics, is strongest. The DPP's tactics, which are intended to counter people power, are doomed to failure," Shih said during a press conference on Ketagalan Boulevard.
DPP Secretary-General Lin Chia-lung (
PHOTO: SUNG CHIH-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
As organizers hoped that some 100,000 people would participate in the event, Lin said that the DPP aimed to contribute between 20,000 and 30,000 people.
Shih, however, dismissed the mobilization as nothing but a bunch of "soulless stage props" manipulated by political parties, adding that they bore no comparison with the anti-Chen protesters, who attended the sit-in of their own free will.
"Let the DPP do it! When it mobilizes thousands of buses filled with soulless puppets, it is doing nothing but helping people see the truth more clearly," he said.
Pledging that his movement would continue to be a peaceful one, Shih once again denied that protest organizers were planning a nationwide strike. He also urged people to participate in the symbolic "siege" of the Presidential Office and the president's official Yushan Residence tomorrow night.
"The horn of history has sounded. We are all warriors. We will continue the battle until A-bian steps down," he said.
A-bian is the president's nickname.
Dismissing comments attributed to Wei Chien-fung (魏千鋒), a lawyer aligned with the anti-Chen movement, that DPP heavyweights had advised campaign organizers, Shih said that only God had guided him.
Chien Hsi-chie, deputy head of Shih's campaign, said that if Chen remained unmoved after tomorrow's "siege," 5,000 protesters would be sent to peacefully lay siege to the Presidential Office.
Meanwhile, as the sit-in campaign entered its fifth day, Jerry Fan (
The idea, which was inspired by the song Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Old Oak Tree, is the latest gimmick suggested by Fan, who previously suggested that protesters draw inspiration from Peru's famous Nazca Lines and dress in red.
"We want to see all the trees around the country tied with red ribbons," Fan said.
Although the majority of anti-Chen protesters will move to the Taipei Railway Station on Saturday, Fan called on the Taiwan Society to cancel its rally so that about 200,000 or 300,000 anti-Chen protesters could remain in the area of Ketagalan Boulevard during the weekend.
Earlier yesterday morning, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (
Wearing a red shirt, Ma led the crowd in shouting "A-bian Step Down!" in Mandarin, Taiwanese and Hakka. Ma said he had taken the opportunity to express the KMT's support for the protesters.
In response to the "siege" plan, Ma called on protesters to show self-restraint, adding that the KMT would allow its members to take part in the event as individuals.
Asked where the money for the bread and soy milk had come from, Ma, who also serves as Taipei mayor, said the KMT had paid for it.
"I went [to Ketagalan Boulevard] in my capacity as KMT chairman, to cheer protesters on behalf of the party. Of course the money [for the bread and soy milk] came from the KMT," Ma said.
However, Premier Su Tseng-chang (
Also yesterday, the Taiwan Society said it had invited Chen to take part in its rally on Saturday.
It did not invite Vice President Annette Lu (
"[Lu] has revealed her ambition to seize power [through legal maneuvering and in a manner that is full of paradoxes]and so we won't invite her," said Chet Yang (
In a statement issued last night by the Presidential Office, Lu said she would reserve her right to institute legal action against Yang whose comments Lu said "did no justice to the truth."
"I have tried my best to assist the president for the past six years. [This fact] is unquestionable," Lu's statement said.
Additional reporting by Jimmy Chuang
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by