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TAIPEI : Taiwan's presidential rivals geared up for the final stretch of their election battle Friday, each aiming to galvanise a million supporters onto the street in mass weekend rallies.
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) Frank Hsieh is desperately trying to eat into the commanding lead enjoyed by the opposition Kuomintang's Ma Ying-jeou for the March 22 vote.
Hsieh will rally supporters Sunday in meetings in the capital, Taipei, and across the island, culminating in a night rally in central Taichung.
"Frankly, we are at a disadvantage at the moment," Hsieh's spokesman Chao Tien-lin told AFP, "and we hope the rallies will help us reverse the trend to win the March 22 vote."
Opinion polls are banned between now and election day, but the last one to be published gave Ma, who has called for closer ties with Beijing, a 20-point lead over Hsieh.
Ma's own party also aims to draw a million people Sunday under the slogan, "oppose corruption, fight for the economy, demand peace, love Taiwan."
Its events will climax with a rally in southern Tainan city.
Whoever is elected will replace incumbent President Chen Shui-bian, who is leaving office after the maximum two terms.
Ma's campaign strategy has focused on reviving the economy, using the same promises of growth and jobs that propelled the KMT to its sweeping victory in January parliamentary elections.
Hsieh, whose party leans toward independence, has underlined the island's sovereignty and identity against rival China.
Beijing and Taipei have been bitter rivals since they split in 1949 at the end of a civil war. - AFP/ch
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