Portrait of Taiwan's first democratically elected president hit by paint-filled balloon on day of his funeral
Taiwan News
Date: 2020/08/14
By: Sylvia Teng, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
Memorial of former Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui at Taipei Guest House (CNA photo)
The suspect, a woman in black, vandalized the interior of a prayer room at the memorial Friday morning, lobbing a balloon filled with red paint at Lee’s portrait. The woman was immediately detained by the police, who found her to be carrying several of the paint-filled balloons, reports said.
Reports suggest that the offender could be retired entertainer Cheng Hui-chung (鄭惠中), who also slapped then-Culture Minister Cheng Li-chiun (鄭麗君) on the face last year during a dinner. She later claimed the slap had been in protest of Cheng's work promoting transitional justice, which has mainly targeted abuses by Taiwan's former Kuomintang Nationalist government and its dictator, Chiang Kai-shek (蔣中正).
The Presidential Office has confirmed the incident, expressing “severe condemnation of the irrational and violent act.” [FULL STORY]
