Taiwan’s main opposition Kuomintang are threatening to try and remove President Lai Ching-te, following a protest in Taipei reportedly attended by over 200,000 people. The KMT and TPP accuse Lai of "authoritarian" behavior and political persecution. However, analysts say the recall effort is unlikely to succeed due to legal and procedural hurdles.
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00:00Mounting recall movements across Taiwan may be about to reach all the way to the top.
00:06The announcement made at a protest outside the presidential office that organizers say drew more than 200,000 people.
00:35The opposition KMT says they'll start the process to recall President Lai on May 20th, exactly one year since he took office.
00:43They accuse Lai of acting like a dictator and weaponizing the legal system against rivals, following criminal investigations into a variety of opposition figures.
00:53And after recent cases of some DPP members being accused of spying for China, the opposition have also taken to labeling the ruling party as green communists, a nod to the party's color.
01:05Lai, responding to the protests, called them a part of a healthy democracy, one that proves the accusation of dictatorship false.
01:12Taiwan,朝野,政黨都是中國滲透的對象.
01:17因此,不是只有綠共,也有藍共,白共.
01:23要占獨裁,確實的地方應該要去天安門,北京天安門,至少至少到中國去.
01:34The move to recall Lai is just the latest in a months-long political battle over recall elections across the country, one that began almost as soon as the 2024 election ended with split executive and legislative branches.
01:48Now, dozens of legislators from both the KMT and DPP could face a recall vote as soon as this summer, but recalling Lai would be a different challenge altogether.
01:57It's mostly an empty threat by the KMT. There's no precedent for this. They don't have the numbers to impeach him, if that's what they mean, because he needs two-thirds in the legislature.
02:08And even if you get that, then the constitutional court needs to decide.
02:11On the other hand, the KMT suggested organizing a referendum to impeach Lai. I'm also not sure how that would work. And I don't think the KMT has the numbers for that right now, actually.
02:22While Lai is unlikely to be removed, it highlights the level of tension in Taiwan's ever more partisan politics, tensions that seem destined to continue until something breaks the deadlock.
02:33Patrick Chun and Chris Gorin for Taiwan Plus.