‘I will not yield’: Taiwan convulsed by 17-year prison sentence for populist opposition figure

The opposition Taiwan People’s party stands by founder Ko Wen-je despite sentence, alleging prosecutors were pressured by ruling DPP party

Opposition figure Ko Wen-je put on a defiant display in front of tens of thousands of supporters outside Taiwan’s Presidential Office, two days after being handed a 17-year prison sentence on corruption charges.

“I will not yield! I will not surrender!” Ko shouted on Sunday in Taipei, as he turned towards the grand, red-brick Japanese colonial-era building in order to directly address President Lai Ching-te.