By Yimou Lee and James Pomfret
By Yimou Lee and James Pomfret
KAOHSIUNG, Taiwan, Jan 9 (Reuters) – In balmy southern Taiwan, with its rural hamlets, industrial belts and slower-paced cities, a rising tide of residents are pushing again towards opposition presidential hopeful Han Kuo-yu, fearing he’ll promote out core Taiwan pursuits to China.
Han, the mayor of the south’s largest metropolis of Kaohsiung, had been anticipated to construct his assist base over the previous yr since successful workplace on a promise to assist residents “make an enormous fortune” by forging higher financial ties with China.
As an alternative, as he prepares for the election on Saturday towards incumbent president Tsai Ing-wen and her independence-minded Democratic Progressive Social gathering (DPP), he has seen his fortunes wane, hammered by criticism over controversial public remarks and failing to ship on marketing campaign guarantees, together with oil exploration within the South China Sea.
Final month, a coalition of teams known as “Wecare Kaohsiung” held a mass anti-Han rally that drew tens of hundreds, some holding indicators with the phrases “Dismiss pro-Communist…