Regarding the gunshot event of President Chen Shui-bian and Vice President Annette Hsiu-lien Lu, Premier Yu Shyi-kun gave the following eleven instructions at a national security mechanism meeting held at the Presidential Office at 4:00 this afternoon:
1.The national security mechanism has been initiated.
2.National affairs will proceed normally without being affected by the incident.
3.The election will be held as scheduled and voters are urged to vote rationally.
4.The incident will be investigated to reveal the truth, and the attacker speedily arrested and brought to justice. The National Police Administration will be in charge of establishing a special task force in conjunction with the national security system.
5.The medical taskforce will be in charge of releasing information about the medical condition of both the president and the vice president.
6.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be in charge of international press releases through consular and representative offices.
7.Secretary-General to the President Chiou I-Jen will brief the heads of the five branches of government on the situation and situation management.
8.The National Security Council and the Central Election Commission will brief the Kuomintang and People First Party alliance on the situation and situation management.
9.All ministers and relevant supervisors will cancel leaves and remain on call.
10.Financial and economic situations will be met with careful responses, and a meeting will be held next Monday by Vice Premier Lin Hsin-i.
11.All ministries and agencies will convene subordinate units to respond to the situation and handle related affairs in order to accomplish effective crisis management.
In a press conference after the meeting, Premier Yu emphasized that the citizens could set their minds at rest as the President's gun wound was all right after treatment and would not affect his handling of national affairs. The Premier also called on all citizens to stay calm and united and to give full support to the government's responding measures. They were urged to contribute to the deepening of Taiwan's democracy by voting in a peaceful, rational and normal fashion tomorrow.
Premier Yu stated that currently the government is running as usual, with national security mechanism having been activated to strengthen social security and safeguard the financial and economic order. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has informed the R.O.C. ambassadors and representatives stationed abroad and foreign media of the incident and the government's responding measures. The Central Election Commission will also continue the presidential election and referendum affairs as planned.
Premier Yu said that President Chen remains fully conscious and keeps contact with the Presidential Office as well as the Executive Yuan in the wake of the gunshot attack. Moreover, Secretary-General to the President Chiou I-Jen has briefed the whole incident to the heads of the five branches of government and asked Wang Jin-pyng, president of Legislative Yuan, to covey the message to the leaders of opposition parties. As for electoral affairs, Mr. Huang Shih-cheng, Chairman of Central Election Commission, is responsible for briefing each candidate's campaign headquarters.
Expressing his regret over the shooting, Premier Yu called on all citizens to stay calm, give full support to the government's responding measures, and contribute to the deepening of Taiwan's democracy by voting in a peaceful, rational and normal fashion tomorrow. He has also instructed the Ministry of the Interior to set up a task force to investigate into this case and track down the culprit.
Tang Yiau-min, Minister of National Defense, said that his Ministry will continue to keep close watch on activities in the Taiwan Strait. The People's Liberation Army along the southeast coast of the Chinese mainland has no unusual moves so far, he said. With the special vigilance mechanism of combat readiness having been activated as planned, the ROC's troops of all establishments will be able to cope with any sudden situation. He called on the people to stay at ease.
Wang Ginn-Wang, Deputy Director of the National Security Bureau, indicated that his bureau has had no information about the attack beforehand. The bureau has coordinated with agencies related to national security to maintain security during the campaign period. Expressing regrets over the incident, he said that the relevant agencies will continue to enhance efforts to maintain security. While his bureau will be in charge of coordination and investigation, the Ministry of the Interior's National Police Administration and the Ministry of Justice will work together to track down the culprit(s) of the gunshot attack.
The national security mechanism meeting this afternoon lasted for about one hour. Among those present in the meeting were Chiou I-Jen, Secretary-General to the President; Kan Ning-Hsiang, Secretary-General of the National Security Council; Tang Yiau-min, National Defense Minister; Foreign Minister Eugene Chien; Mainland Affairs Council Chairperson Tsai Ing-wen; Economics Minister Lin Yi-fu; Finance Minister Lin Chuan; Perng Fai-nan, Governor of the Central Bank of China; Vice Interior Minister Hsu Ing-shen; and Wang Ginn-Wang, Deputy Director of the National Security Bureau.