Lien starting to look very lonely

[dArKeR]

It has been almost one year since the attempted assassination of President Chen Shui-bian (???) and Vice President Annette Lu (???) on March 19. Since then, many things have changed, but the bitterness of Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan (??) about his defeat in the presidential election not one of them. Against this backdrop, the protest the KMT plans to hold on March 19 this year is especially ironic.

One of the biggest changes since the assassination attempt is of course the relationship between the KMT and the People First Party (PFP). The PFP was a passionate and enthusiastic participant in the post-election rallies and protests against Chen's re-election. In fact, several PFP lawmakers were even seen spearheading riots in various places at the time.

But this time around, PFP Chairman James Soong (???) has already indicated that he will not be participating in the rally. At first, he had suggested that the PFP should not participate, but later on, as a result of pressure within the party, Soong said that anyone who wishes to may go on his or her own. Many PFP lawmakers had already indicated that they would attend. This raises the question of whether Soong can effectively lead his party to cooperate with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) after his reconciliation with Chen. After all, PFP lawmakers are in general elected by the more conservative pan-blue supporters. Unlike Soong, they have to worry about being re-elected.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/edit/archives/2005/03/11/2003245787