Taiwan Temple Holds Event Despite COVID-19... Tsai Ing-wen Says "I Also Suspended My Inauguration"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] When a famous Taoist temple in Taiwan planned a large-scale event despite the COVID-19 pandemic, President Tsai Ing-wen pressured them by saying, "I have also stopped preparations for the inauguration ceremony."

According to local Taiwanese media such as Liberty Times on the 27th, President Tsai Ing-wen, who won re-election with a landslide victory in the presidential election last January, announced on Facebook the day before, "To focus on COVID-19 prevention, preparations for the inauguration ceremony scheduled for May 20th have been halted."

President Tsai added, "Due to the COVID-19 situation, there will be no large-scale celebration events on the day of the inauguration," and "It will be handled according to the judgment of health authorities."

However, the Presidential Office of Taiwan explained that some schedules, such as the presidential oath-taking and receiving foreign dignitaries, will proceed as originally planned.

While President Tsai has stopped preparations for her own inauguration, the famous Taoist temple in Taiwan, Zhenlan Gong Temple, announced it will hold a large-scale pilgrimage event in mid-next month, causing conflict with the central government.

The Taiwanese government has expressed a negative stance on holding large-scale events due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19. The Taiwanese medical community is also opposing the Zhenlan Gong pilgrimage event for the same reason.

The Zhenlan Gong pilgrimage, which has continued since 1948, is Taiwan's largest event, involving an 8-night, 9-day round trip on foot covering 340 km from Taichung to Jayi County. Designated as a "National Important Folk Activity" in 2011, about 2 million people participate in this event from both domestic and overseas.

Some speculate that because the event generates an economic effect of up to 3 billion Taiwan dollars (approximately 120.2 billion KRW) during the period, it will not be easy to decide on cancellation.

Meanwhile, according to Taiwan's health authorities, the total number of COVID-19 patients in Taiwan has been confirmed as 32 (1 death).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.