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Lawyer Lin Chih-chiang: DPP only blocked China's Sinovac vaccine, not others

From Liberty Times · () Chinese

Translated from Chinese, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Lawyer Lin Chih-chiang criticized accusations that the DPP blocked vaccine purchases, stating only China's Sinovac vaccine was blocked.
  • He argued that the government pursued multiple vaccine options, including BNT, Moderna, AZ, and Medigen, and did not force citizens to take any specific vaccine.
  • Lin suggested that claims of the DPP blocking vaccines are an attempt to alter public memory, as the government did not prevent imports and only blocked Sinovac.

Taiwanese lawyer Lin Chih-chiang has strongly refuted claims that the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) obstructed vaccine procurement during the COVID-19 pandemic. He specifically addressed the controversy surrounding the Tzu Chi Foundation's failed attempt to purchase BNT vaccines, which resulted in a NT$1.06 billion fraud.

The blue-white parties' accusations that the DPP blocked vaccines make one suspect they want to wash memories.

— Lin Chih-chiangDuring a discussion about vaccine procurement controversies.

Lin argued on Facebook that the accusations, particularly from the "blue-white" opposition parties, are an attempt to manipulate public memory. He pointed out that at the time, citizens had choices among BNT, Moderna, AZ, and the domestic Medigen vaccine. "No one forced the public to inject Medigen," he stated, emphasizing that the government did not mandate any particular vaccine.

The lawyer explained that the DPP government initially negotiated with the original manufacturer of BNT in Germany. He asserted that China interfered with this deal, and there would have been no reason for the government to block the vaccine's import if it were available. Lin contended that if the DPP truly intended to block vaccines, they would have followed China's approach by prohibiting all foreign vaccines and restricting citizens to only Sinovac.

If the DPP authorities really wanted to block vaccines, they should have followed China's approach, banning all foreign vaccines so that Chinese people could only get Sinovac.

— Lin Chih-chiangExplaining his view on the government's vaccine policy.

"The only vaccine Chen Shih-chung blocked was Sinovac," Lin declared, referring to the former Minister of Health and Welfare and commander of the Central Epidemic Command Center. He implied that the government's actions were aimed at securing viable vaccine options rather than arbitrarily blocking them, and that the opposition's narrative distorts this reality.

The only vaccine Chen Shih-chung blocked was Sinovac.

— Lin Chih-chiangClarifying which specific vaccine faced import obstruction.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Liberty Times in Chinese. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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