The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday urged prosecutors to appeal two court rulings that acquitted some Sunflower movement members who stormed the Legislative Yuan and Executive Yuan buildings in 2014, to help restore the public’s faith in the justice system.
KMT Culture and Communications Committee deputy director Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) said that the verdicts have raised questions on whether the judges made the decisions because they were afraid of convicting “criminals” who have been painted “heroes” by the media.
“Taiwan is a nation ruled by law and it has taken great pride in it. However, the court’s decision to acquit defendants in the March 18 case under the pretext of civil disobedience is not only unconstitutional, but also ran counter to the principles that a court ruling should be free of undue interference,” Hung said at a news conference in Taipei.
Hung was referring to the Taipei District Court’s decision on March 31 to acquit 22 defendants who broke into the Legislative Yuan on the night of March 18, 2014, based on the principle of “civil disobedience.”
Hung said as the term “civil disobedience” is nowhere to be found in the nation’s legal code, using it to absolve Sunflower movement participants from guilt risks undermining judicial credibility.
The ruling was followed by another verdict handed down by the district court on Monday that acquitted 10 of the 21 Sunflower members who stormed the Executive Yuan on March 23 that year, including Dennis Wei (魏揚).
However, eight defendants were found guilty of obstructing official business and three others were found guilty of damaging public property.
Monday’s verdict left the public puzzled about judicial review standards, as some defendants were found guilty while others were not, Hung said.
“It might not only prompt more people to follow suit and occupy government buildings, but also encourage them to do whatever it takes to become famous if they want to be acquitted of their crimes in the future,” Hung said.
Urging President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) to respect the principle of separation of powers, Hung said the KMT hoped the prosecutors would appeal the rulings to restore the public’s faith in the judicial system.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
RSS