The Taiwan High Court yesterday extended former president Chen Shui-bian’s (陳水扁) detention by another two months from Dec. 24.
High Court judges wrote in their ruling that after hearing arguments from prosecutors and the defendant, they believed that the reasons for Chen’s detention, including a flight risk and fear that he would collude with witnesses, remained valid.
In response to the argument by Chen’s attorneys that his lengthy detention harmed his right to a defense in court because it limited the time he has to meet with his lawyers, judges said Chen has been allowed unlimited access to his lawyers ever since the trial began at the Taipei District Court.
Therefore, the judges said, the detention does not affect Chen’s right to self-defense.
The High Court ruled that Chen needed to be detained to ensure a smooth litigation process because he stands accused of serious crimes and there are still dozens of witnesses and defendants who have yet to testify in court.
For Chen, the extended detention ruling means he will probably spend Christmas and the Lunar New Year in detention.
The former president has been held at the Taipei Detention Center since Dec. 30 last year.
This is the second time that the High Court has extended Chen’s detention. The first time was on Sept. 24, when judges ruled that Chen should remain in detention until Dec. 24 as the crimes he had been found guilty of were serious and, as a former president, he had more opportunity to flee the country than an ordinary citizen.
Judges also expressed concern about the large amount of money and other assets the former first family has overseas.
Chen then filed an appeal against the detention ruling, which was approved by the Supreme Court on Oct. 8.
The Supreme Court ruled that High Court judges should reconsider whether their reasons for Chen’s detention were sufficient and hold a second detention hearing.
The High Court then ruled that Chen should be kept behind bars. Chen filed an appeal, but the Supreme Court said on Nov. 5 that the reasons listed by the High Court were adequate.
Taiwan is stepping up plans to create self-sufficient supply chains for combat drones and increase foreign orders from the US to counter China’s numerical superiority, a defense official said on Saturday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, the official said the nation’s armed forces are in agreement with US Admiral Samuel Paparo’s assessment that Taiwan’s military must be prepared to turn the nation’s waters into a “hellscape” for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Paparo, the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, reiterated the concept during a Congressional hearing in Washington on Wednesday. He first coined the term in a security conference last
Prosecutors today declined to say who was questioned regarding alleged forgery on petitions to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators, after Chinese-language media earlier reported that members of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Youth League were brought in for questioning. The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau confirmed that two people had been questioned, but did not disclose any further information about the ongoing investigation. KMT Youth League members Lee Hsiao-liang (李孝亮) and Liu Szu-yin (劉思吟) — who are leading the effort to recall DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) and Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) — both posted on Facebook saying: “I
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
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
RSS