District prosecutors said they would appeal the sentences given former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) daughter-in-law, Huang Jui-ching (黃睿靚), and family friend Tsai Ming-che (蔡銘哲) because the fines were disproportionate to their involvement in Chen’s corruption cases.
Chen and his wife, Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍), were found guilty of receiving kickbacks from a development company to pave the way for the construction of the Hsinchu Science Park by purchasing a plot of land in Taoyuan County from the company at a price prosecutors said was unreasonably high.
Former Hsinchu Science Park head James Lee (李界木) and Wu’s friend Tsai Ming-che were found guilty of pocketing part of the money and transferring kickbacks to accounts held by Chen family members.
PHOTO: CNA
Lee was sentenced to six years in prison and was deprived of his civil rights for three years. Tsai was sentenced to two years in prison, but could receive five years probation instead if he pays the treasury NT$3 million (US$92,000).
Huang was sentenced to one year and eight months and fined NT$150 million on money laundering charges. If she wants to receive probation in lieu of serving time, she must pay the treasury NT$200 million.
Prosecutors said they would appeal Huang and Tsai’s sentences because Huang would have to pay 67 times more than Tsai when it was clear that Tsai was heavily involved in the case while Huang was only partly involved. This was a violation of the principle of proportionality, prosecutors said.
Meanwhile, Chen’s office yesterday said the former president had asked his lawyers to file an appeal but that he would not attend the hearings if his appeals were not handled in a fair and transparent manner.
Chen’s office issued a statement citing an anonymous source at the High Court as saying that after Judge Chou Chan-chun (周占春) released Chen from detention last year, Taiwan High Court President Huang Shui-tong (黃水通) asked Judge Chen Hsiao-pei (陳筱佩) to determine whether Chou should be removed from the former president’s cases even though Chen Hsiao-pei was abroad at the time.
“In other words, it was a clear case of administrative interference in a trial for the High Court president to designate a certain judge to handle a particular case,” the statement said.
If the High Court engages in such “petty maneuvering” and abuse of authority again, the former president would again consider refusing to attend hearings or remain silent in protest, the statement said.
Chen Shui-bian remained silent at his pre-trial hearings, staring in June, to protest what he described as an unfair judicial system. He also relinquished his right to call witnesses or speak in his defense, saying they were unnecessary because he was innocent.
He broke his silence at the end of his trial in late July when he reiterated that the switching of judges last year was unconstitutional and that there had been no procedural justice in his trial.
Others have also claimed the switch was politically motivated. Some legal experts also said the decision to merge the trials had violated judicial procedures.
Chen Shui-bian’s office has asked the Council of Grand Justices to rule on the legitimacy of his pre-trial detention and the switching of judges from Chou to Tsai Shou-hsun (蔡守訓).
Taiwan High Court spokesperson Wen Yao-yuan (溫耀源) said yesterday that Chen Hsiao-pei had been selected from a random drawing, in accordance with the law.
As for which high court judge would preside over Chen Shui-bian’s appeal, Wen said the High Court would conduct a random drawing in accordance with the law and that the entire process would be transparent.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as