Slanderous insinuations shouldn't overdo it

One of them who did was Lee Chun-yee, a four-term Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker. He predicted on Wednesday that the Kuomintang (KMT) would lose the coming legislative by-elections and the mayoral elections in five special municipalities, including Taipei and Kaohsiung, scheduled for the end of next year. “But even if the Kuomintang lost all of them,” he went on, “it wouldn't be the fault of (KMT secretary-general) King Pu-tsung ... (because) King has such a relationship with (President) Ma Ying-jeou as one that transcends friendship.”

The innuendo is slanderous. That's why King, Ma's alter-ego who assumed office as KMT secretary-general on the same day, bristled and hit back. He said Lee “overshot the runway indeed.” Eager to clarify the issue, King told reporters, “If (Lee desired) something must be said, there shouldn't be any ambiguity in suggesting a relationship between a man and another man. That's extremely unfair to my family, my wife in particular.”

Lee was campaigning for candidates of the opposition party for the parliamentary by-elections. “Competition between political parties should be a benign one,: King went on. “The truth is simple,” he said, adding, “If there is (such a relationship as was insinuated), there it is and if there isn't, there it isn't.” He understood why Lee had to make that slanderous innuendo on the stumps. “But don't overdo it,” he warned. He didn't threaten to sue the legislator for making those remarks which he described as “teaching material to tell the people what not to do for democracy in Taiwan.”

Lee just hinted at homosexuality, which is still frowned upon in Taiwan. Of course, he dared not openly charge Ma and King. Had he done so, the lawmaker would have been sued.

President Ma made no comment. He probably thought it absolutely unnecessary to respond. Well, the president has been slandered and maligned more than often enough to totally ignore such a ridiculous suggestion as the one made by a politician like Lee.

Slanderous potshots, however, should be condemned.

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