Taiwanese group led by sex tape star stages protest outside Malacañang

About a dozen hooded activists from Taiwan, led by an ex-legislator driven from office by a sex scandal, held a demonstration at the gates of Malacañang on Saturday to demand an apology from President Benigno Aquino for the fatal shooting of a Taiwanese fisherman.

 

The women donned sackcloth over their heads as a sign of mourning over what they call the death of the Philippines' character.



They were led by Chu Mei-Feng, a notorious former Taipei City councilwoman who was embroiled in a sex tape scandal and forced from office in 2001, according to an account by the BBC. She is also a former TV anchorwoman in Macau.

A video of Chu having sex with a married lover was widely circulated in 2001, with photos published by a Taiwan tabloid. The incident made a CNN list of Asia's top 5 celebrity scandals (which was topped by the Hayden Kho-Katrina Halili sex tape).

Chu has since made comebacks as a singer, news reader, and now anti-Philippines activist.

“Don’t push me, I’ll walk by myself"
 

Authorities blocked the Taiwanese protesters when they marched near Malacañang grounds, pushing them back with their shields when they tried to get close.

Chu Mei-feng reportedly shouted to the Philippine police: “Don’t push me, I’ll walk by myself."

 

She demanded a formal apology from Aquino himself in order to diffuse further tensions with Taipei.

 

"Everybody now is waiting for the President's apology to Taiwan and to the Chinese all over the world because we know that in the future, we still very good to each other," said the former Taiwanese councilwoman Chu.

"And we know that Philippines government official that just did this kind of shooting the Taiwan people to die, and we don't want this kind of accident, or this kind of thing to happen again, so the President's apology is very important."

 

A Taiwanese fisherman was killed in a shooting incident on May 9 by the Philippines Coast Guard in waters off northern Philippines.

 

The Philippine Coast Guard admitted to the shooting, but said it had done so in self-defense when the fishing vessel tried to ram their ship.

 

Diplomatic tensions between the countries heightened last week when Taiwan recalled its envoy to the Philippines and imposed sanctions on Manila after failing to comply with their demands, which included a thorough investigation and a formal apology by the the Philippine government.

 

The Philippines sent a special envoy last week to deliver a formal apology from the President, but was later rejected by the Taiwan Foreign Ministry.

 

Taiwan said the Philippines only authorized the Manila Economic and Cultural Office to express apology on behalf of the Filipino people, but not on behalf of the government.

 

A parallel investigation has also been agreed upon between Taipei and Manila, with close coordination between the two investigation teams in regards to information sharing.

 

Chu said there are many things Aquino needs to apologize for.

 

"We request that the Philippines president should take up the responsibility and proceed with a fair and concrete behavior to the international community," Chu exclaimed. "He should apologize to Taiwan for the loss of lives, apologize to Chinese all over the world for discrimination against the Chinese, apologize to the world for the wrong example the Philippines has demonstrated, and apologize to the Filipinos as they are judged and misunderstood overseas. Apologize so as to prevent the Philippines from being shamed and the Filipinos from being embarrassed. Philippines can only be a country to be proud of if the president apologizes."
 

The row is the latest flare-up in Asian seas where disputes between various countries have raised fears of conflict in the economically vibrant region where competition for resources is intensifying.

 

The Philippines and Taiwan, as well as China, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam, are embroiled in disputes over territory in the South China Sea, potentially rich in oil and gas and criss-crossed by crucial shipping lanes.  — Reuters/ GMA News