Taipei City Council candidate assaulted while canvassing for votes

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A woman who is running for Taipei City Council was suddenly attacked in broad daylight on Wednesday morning (Nov. 23) while campaigning, suffering a concussion, and has been hospitalized due to severe bleeding.

That morning, Lin Chieh-li (林婕麗), a New Party (NP) candidate for Taipei's Fourth District, stood at the intersection in front of the Dazhi Police Station in Taipei's Zhongshan District to canvass for votes. According to an NP statement, Lin had been standing in the area for less than five minutes when an unidentified man rushed over and attacked her.

The assailant caught Lin off guard, causing serious injury. Lin was rushed to nearby MacKay Memorial Hospital for emergency treatment.

After receiving emergency treatment, although Lin's wound had been sutured, doctors listed her in serious condition. Not only was she diagnosed with a concussion, but she also suffered from bleeding from the right side of her head.

In addition, her right scapula was fractured and she had no mobility in her arm. She is currently hospitalized for diagnosis and treatment.

According to a preliminary police investigation, a 25-year-old man surnamed Chang (張) got into an argument with his girlfriend the previous evening. After a long night of eating and drinking in the Dazhi neighborhood of Zhongshan District, he found that his wallet was missing early the next morning.

When Chang went down to the Dazhi Police Station at 7 a.m. on Wednesday morning to report the loss, he claimed that because he was in a bad mood and that the candidate calling for votes on the roadside was"very noisy", he struck Lin, causing her to suffer lacerations to her head, police officers at the station arrested Chang on the spot.

Chang is reportedly cooperating with the police investigation at the Dazhi Police Station and the details of the case are yet to be clarified.