TPP supporters clash with police at rally over Ko Wen-je's legal case

Taipei, Aug. 30 (CNA) Supporters of the Taiwan People's Party (TPP) clashed with police Saturday morning during a rally that marked the one-year anniversary of a sweeping raid by Taipei prosecutors targeting former TPP chair and Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲).

Police ordered the nearly 1,000 rally participants to disperse at 9:25 a.m., having first asked the demonstrators to stop at 8:16 a.m., as incumbent TPP chair Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) and the crowd attempted to cross the intersection of Aiguo West Road and Zhongshan South Road on their way to the President's residence.

In addition to TPP lawmakers, Ko's wife Chen Pei-chi (陳佩琪) and mother Ho Jui-ying (何瑞英) were also among the crowd.

Police said the rally violated the Assembly and Parade Act because no permit had been applied for or granted. As police and demonstrators pushed back and forth over temporary barriers, protesters chanted, "Return our road rights!"

Tensions eased around 12:30 p.m., although the rally continued.

Speaking to supporters gathered near the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Huang called the campaign a "brave step from the darkness" that began a year ago.

"On Aug. 30, 2024, for the first time in Taiwan, the headquarters of a major opposition party and the residence of its chair were raided by prosecutors at the request of the ruling party," he said.

On that day, prosecutors led police in raids on Ko's home and his office at the party's headquarters. They took Ko, who served as Taipei mayor from 2014-2022 and ran as a 2024 presidential candidate, to the Taipei District Prosecutors Office for investigation on suspicion of corruption during his second mayoral term.

Prosecutors' request to detain Ko and hold him incommunicado was approved on Sept. 5.

Ko was indicted on Dec. 26, 2024 on four charges, including misappropriating slush funds of nearly NT$70 million (US$2.23 million) during his presidential run, with the total alleged amount in the case exceeding over NT$93.71 million. But Ko has maintained his innocence.

During a court session on Aug. 19, Ko said: "This case is strange because everyone is still discussing which law I violated, while I have been detained for one year."

He has been detained for most of the time since then, with a brief release on bail from Dec. 30, 2024 to Jan. 2 of this year.

Saying the Aug. 30 date "has left a deep scar in the history of Taiwan's democracy and rule of law," Huang claimed the year-long investigation had made little progress and was fraught with information leakage, suppression, and a lack of judicial independence.

He also accused prosecutors of working with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and pro-DPP media, adding that the process highlighted Taiwan's urgent need for judicial transparency.

The rally ended after its arrival at the Presidential residence, where a representative received a petition presented by Chen Pei-chi.

"[Ko] is my husband," Chen said. "I'm not asking President Lai for a judicial favor or amnesty, but to give my husband -- who was also a chair of an opposition party -- a fair ruling."