The female chair of the Democratic Progressive Party in Taiwan, Tsai Ing-Wen, who is running for the presidency in that country is garnering attention for her refusal to answer a question about her sexuality. AFP reports:
"I don't want to answer his question and I most certainly won't do it. If I answer him I will become an accomplice of sexual suppression," said Tsai Ing-Wen, chairwoman of the main opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
Tsai, who is 54 and single, had been asked about her sexuality by a former chairman of the party, Shih Ming-teh.
"There is nothing wrong with any sexual orientation or marital status and no one has the right to question others ... We need to work harder to defend the human rights of all sexual minority groups," she said in a statement.Shih had drawn criticism from gay and women's rights groups for asking Tsai about her sexuality. "A presidential candidate has to talk about his or her sexual orientation, which will affect his or her judgement call as a president," Shih said in footage aired by local television. "If she really is a homosexual and she is willing to speak it aloud, Taiwan's international status will be higher," he said.
Polls show that Tsai is slightly behind her opponent in approval ratings.