Former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) lawyer said yesterday that he would once again request the release of his client as Chen was still refusing to eat in protest at what he has called “political persecution.”
Cheng Wen-long (鄭文龍) told reporters after visiting Chen at the Taipei Detention Center in Tucheng (土城), Taipei County, that he would file the request at the Taipei District Court.
Cheng said Chen’s detention was unnecessary as the grounds for his incarceration no longer existed because prosecutors had already questioned Chen’s wife, son and former premier Yu Shyi-kun.
Cheng said he informed Chen of his intention when he visited him last week and that Chen respected his advice and had authorized him to file the request.
The decision came after the Taiwan High Court on Thursday rejected an appeal filed by Cheng contesting Chen’s detention. Cheng said he could seek a constitutional interpretation on the ruling from the Council of Grand Justices.
The court overruled the appeal on the grounds that Chen had not signed the application. Chen has said he would relinquish his right to appeal the detention in protest at what he has called “political persecution” and a “political vendetta” against him.
Sue Wang (王時思), a legal adviser at Chen’s office, yesterday said that Cheng would need Chen’s signature to request the release of his client.
Regarding the constitutional interpretation, Wang said Cheng had yet to make the request, but that he would do so at “an appropriate time.”
Chen is suspected of money laundering, taking bribes, forgery and embezzling NT$15 million (US$450,000) during his two terms in office. He has been detained without charge since Nov. 12 and has refused to eat since Nov. 13.
Cheng said his client was still refusing food yesterday, but had agreed to drink a diluted sports drink and 15cc of medicine to settle his stomach.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,900) for advertisements that exceeded its approved business scope and ordered the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license would be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter supervision of Chinese e-commerce platforms and more stringent measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan as US President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on origin laundering. The legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday met to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report on the matter. Democratic Progressive Party
Taiwan and its Pacific ally Tuvalu on Tuesday signed two accords aimed at facilitating bilateral cooperation on labor affairs, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). The governments inked two agreements in Taipei, witnessed by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and visiting Deputy Tuvaluan Prime Minister Panapasi Nelesone, MOFA said in a news release. According to MOFA, the agreements will facilitate cooperation on labor issues and allow the two sides to mutually recognize seafarers’ certificates and related training. Taiwan would also continue to collaborate with Tuvalu across various fields to promote economic prosperity as well as the well-being of their
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office has continued its investigation into allegations of forged signatures in recall efforts today by searching the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) city chapter and questioning several personnel including the chapter director, according to media reports. Among those questioned and detained were KMT Taipei chapter director Huang Lu Chin-ju (黃呂錦茹), chapter secretary-general Chu Wen-ching (初文卿), chapter secretary Yao Fu-wen (姚富文) and first district committee executive director Tseng Fan-chuan (曾繁川). Prosecutors said they would not confirm reports about who had been summoned. The investigation centers on allegations that the ongoing recall campaigns targeting Democratic Progressive Party legislators Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤)
RSS