Taiwan: Kaohsiung speaker jumps to death after mayor loses recall votes

Speaker of the City Council in Southern Taiwan’s Kaohsiung, Hsu Kun-yuan committed suicide on June 6, hours after the city mayor Han Kuo Yu lost the highly charged recall votes. Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu from the main opposition party- Kuomintang (KMT), which traditionally favour close ties with China, was soundly beaten in the votes after which he accused the ruling party and the media propaganda. The party had also lost the January Presidential elections after, Han Kuo-yu, the party’s candidate was defeated by Tsai Ing-wen.

According to reports, 63-year-old Kun-yuan, was a supporter of Kuo-yu and an active member of KMT. Speaking about the incident, the  Kaohsiung police reportedly said that the council speaker jumped from his 17th-floor apartment, a few hours after the announcement of Han’s defeat. However, they added that the case is still being investigated.

Mayor recalls vote

Voters in the Taiwanese port city of Kaohsiung on June 6 ousted their mayor, whose failed bid for the presidency on behalf of the China-friendly Nationalist Party earlier this year brought widespread disapproval among residents. The number of votes to recall Han Kuo-yu far exceeded the 574,996 needed to remove him. Han accepted the result in a statement to supporters and media after the threshold was passed.

Read: Taiwanese Vote To Recall City Mayor Who Sought Presidency

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But he blamed the media in part for the result, saying he had been subjected to “constant smears, rumors and attacks." He has one week to leave office unless he decides to appeal. The success of the recall vote - Taiwan's first - was hailed by commentators as the latest sign of politicians being held accountable in the island's robust democracy. It is also a further blow to the Nationalists, who moved their government to the island after Mao Zedong's Communists swept to power in mainland China in 1949.

With inputs from agencies

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