TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan's "King of Protests," Ke Tsi-hai (柯賜海), was found dead in a van in Taipei City on Monday (Nov. 21) with police saying that he died from natural causes.
On Monday morning, Ke's body was found in a blue van that was parked next to a basketball court in Qianshan Park on Yangmingshan in Taipei City's Beitou District, reported SET News. The 66-year-old had been living in the van in recent years and had become a recluse as he suffered from the effects of Parkinson's Disease.
Van where Ke's body was found. (CNA photo)
At 8:30 a.m., Taipei police received a report from a woman surnamed Ke claiming that her brother had died in a van parked beside Jianguo Street. She claimed that her brother fell and injured his head on Sunday (Nov. 20), but he refused to seek medical treatment.
When she brought food for him on Monday morning, she unexpectedly found that he had died inside the vehicle. Later that day, the Shilin District Prosecutor's Office announced that after conducting an autopsy, it had ruled out foul play and determined that Ke died from natural causes, per CNA.
Ke expelled by security personnel during KMT Central Committee meeting in June 2005. (CNA photo)
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Ke became known as the "King of Protests" for crusades on the rights of stray dogs during the Taipei mayoral tenures of Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九). He was most active when Ma was mayor, often appearing during Ma's public trips holding placards with slogans such as "Ma Ying-jeou, give me back my cows," demanding the city return his confiscated cattle.
He had a number of unsuccessful bids for public office that included runs for Taipei City mayor, legislator, and Hualien County magistrate. His last public protest opposed the Constitutional Court's ruling on forced labor in prisons late last year.
Ke kneels at Taitung Airport in 2011 to protest being sentenced to forced labor for crimes. (CNA photo)
Ke protests Constitutional Court interpretation on forced labor in prisons on Dec. 10, 2021. (CNA photo)
