TAIPEI (TVBS News) — A Taipei City councilor criticized the exclusion of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP, 民進黨) councilors from the Taipei-Shanghai Twin City Forum (雙城論壇) luncheon scheduled for Tuesday (Dec. 17) the councilor described the forum as a "one-sided, pro-China event."
The 15th Twin City Forum will take place tomorrow, with Vice Shanghai Mayor Hua Yuan (華源) and his delegation arriving at Taipei Songshan Airport (松山機場) today. Li Xiaodong (李驍東), deputy director of the Shanghai Taiwan Affairs Office, led the advance party that arrived in Taiwan starting Dec. 13.
Yen Ruo-fang (顏若芳), a Taipei City Councilor, expressed on Facebook that the Taipei City Government refused to provide details about the Shanghai delegation's itinerary and excluded DPP members from the luncheon. She criticized the forum as a "one-sided, pro-China event."
Yen highlighted her repeated requests for the delegation's itinerary from Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an's (蔣萬安) administration until Dec. 13. Yet, she still needs concrete information and questions the Taipei City Government's transparency. According to Yen, the Shanghai delegation will host a banquet at the Grand Hyatt Taipei (君悅飯店) on Tuesday, inviting only Kuomintang (國民黨) and Taiwan People's Party (民眾黨) councilors.