Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Acting Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) yesterday denied accusations that former party chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) had direct contact with top Chinese officials, calling them part of a “smear campaign.”
The Chinese-language Mirror Media on Sunday released alleged messages between Ko — who last month stepped down as chairman of the party as he awaits trial on corruption charges — and his campaign finance chief, Lee Wen-tsung (李文宗).
There was no need to formally respond to the magazine’s allegations, Huang told a news conference, calling it “trash” and the report an attempt to paint Ko “red,” an apparent reference to the Chinese Communist Party.
Photo courtesy of the Taiwan People’s Party
TPP Legislator Chen Gau-tzu (陳昭姿) said she is known for her stance in favor of Taiwanese independence and Ko would not have invited her to join the party or placed her in a favorable position if he was pro-China.
Asked how Taiwan’s political parties should communicate with China, Huang said that it is the TPP’s mission to defend democracy, freedom and Taiwan’s way of life.
There is no need to engage in war and the two sides should be able to communicate for the benefit of the public, he added.
The messages Mirror Media said it had obtained allegedly showed that Lee communicated with former Mainland Affairs Council deputy minister Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀), E-United Group founder Lin Yi-shou (林義守) and China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) Director Song Tao (宋濤), with the magazine saying that the connections extended up to Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) office.
Chinese officials allegedly had a favorable view of Ko’s candidacy, the report said.
It also alleged that Ko had ordered Lee to delete the messages due to their sensitive nature.
Twenty-four Republican members of the US House of Representatives yesterday introduced a concurrent resolution calling on the US government to abolish the “one China” policy and restore formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Led by US representatives Tom Tiffany and Scott Perry, the resolution calls for not only re-establishing formal relations, but also urges the US Trade Representative to negotiate a free-trade agreement (FTA) with Taiwan and for US officials to advocate for Taiwan’s full membership in the UN and other international organizations. In a news release announcing the resolution, Tiffany, who represents a Wisconsin district, called the “one China” policy “outdated, counterproductive
Actress Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛) has “returned home” to Taiwan, and there are no plans to hold a funeral for the TV star who died in Japan from influenza- induced pneumonia, her family said in a statement Wednesday night. The statement was released after local media outlets reported that Barbie Hsu’s ashes were brought back Taiwan on board a private jet, which arrived at Taipei Songshan Airport around 3 p.m. on Wednesday. To the reporters waiting at the airport, the statement issued by the family read “[we] appreciate friends working in the media for waiting in the cold weather.” “She has safely returned home.
ON PAROLE: The 73-year-old suspect has a criminal record of rape committed when he was serving in the military, as well as robbery and theft, police said The Kaohsiung District Court yesterday approved the detention of a 73-year-old man for allegedly murdering three women. The suspect, surnamed Chang (張), was arrested on Wednesday evening in connection with the death of a 71-year-old woman surnamed Chao (趙). The Kaohsiung City Police Department yesterday also unveiled the identities of two other possible victims in the serial killing case, a 75-year-old woman surnamed Huang (黃), the suspect’s sister-in-law, and a 75-year-old woman surnamed Chang (張), who is not related to the suspect. The case came to light when Chao disappeared after taking the suspect back to his residence on Sunday. Police, upon reviewing CCTV
TRUMP ERA: The change has sparked speculation on whether it was related to the new US president’s plan to dismiss more than 1,000 Joe Biden-era appointees The US government has declined to comment on a post that indicated the departure of Laura Rosenberger as chair of the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT). Neither the US Department of State nor the AIT has responded to the Central News Agency’s questions on the matter, after Rosenberger was listed as a former chair on the AIT’s official Web site, with her tenure marked as 2023 to this year. US officials have said previously that they usually do not comment on personnel changes within the government. Rosenberger was appointed head of the AIT in 2023, during the administration of former US president Joe
RSS