Saturday, March 20, 2004
trouble ahead for taiwan?
Word on the ground is that Taiwanese President ("John Fitzgerald") Chen gained tremendous political benefit from surviving an "assassination" attempt just before the election he just won. Consider:
- Immediately after Chen was shot, he was photographed with blood coming from his stomach region and had no apparent idea he had been struck by a bullet;
- It is being said that the bullet found in his jacket after he was rushed to hospital had not entered his body and did not match the wound;
- Chen gained tremendous sympathy from the incident and defeated his KMT opponent by just 20,000 votes in an election that had 80% turn-out;
- the would-be assassin has not yet been identified or caught;
The PRC of China - as well as nearly half the Taiwanese electorate who passionately disagree with the incumbent president's policies - can be expected to be hopping mad at the re-election of Mr Chen, an agitator for Taiwanese independence. In the cauldron of Taiwanese politics and Taiwan-China relations, this would not seem to be a good omen.
Developing......
- Immediately after Chen was shot, he was photographed with blood coming from his stomach region and had no apparent idea he had been struck by a bullet;
- It is being said that the bullet found in his jacket after he was rushed to hospital had not entered his body and did not match the wound;
- Chen gained tremendous sympathy from the incident and defeated his KMT opponent by just 20,000 votes in an election that had 80% turn-out;
- the would-be assassin has not yet been identified or caught;
The PRC of China - as well as nearly half the Taiwanese electorate who passionately disagree with the incumbent president's policies - can be expected to be hopping mad at the re-election of Mr Chen, an agitator for Taiwanese independence. In the cauldron of Taiwanese politics and Taiwan-China relations, this would not seem to be a good omen.
Developing......
