Control Yuan member Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) on Tuesday volunteered to investigate the Taiwan High Court’s acquittal of former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to determine whether the judges had abused the principle of judicial discretion.
As the case involves a former president and has generated controversy, it should be looked into, especially as conflicting rulings have given rise to doubt over the judges’ legal basis, Chen said.
Ma has been accused of being complicit in encouraging then-prosecutor-general Huang Shyh-ming (黃世銘) to leak a transcript of a wiretapped conversation of Democratic Progressive Party caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) to then-premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) and then-Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) in September 2013.
The wiretap was related to an ongoing investigation of Ker over alleged breaches of trust.
Ma was acquitted in the first trial, but the High Court sentenced him to four years in prison in the second trial, before acquitting him in a retrial on Friday last week.
In the latest ruling, the judges said that Ma had not abused his position as president to obtain the classified documents, nor had he instructed or encouraged Huang to leak them.
“Huang’s contravention of the law does not mean that Ma also broke the law,” the ruling said.
Ma said that the ruling upheld his innocence and clearly delineated the boundaries of a president’s executive power, which would serve as a point of reference for future presidents.
However, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office, which prosecuted the case, alleged that the judges in the retrial had only summarily read through the previous indictment, rulings and evidence.
The original indictment said that Ma had illegally encouraged or ordered Huang to leak information to Jiang and Lo, neither of which were legally privy to such information, the office said.
However, the court mistakenly believed that the indictment attempted to prove the complicity of Huang and Ma, the office said.
By failing to rule on the content of the original indictment, the retrial should not be valid, as it was against the law, the office said, adding that it is mulling whether to launch an extraordinary appeal.
Meanwhile, lawyer Lin Hsien-tung (林憲同) on Tuesday brought malfeasance charges against Chang Hui-li (張惠立), the judge who presided over the High Court retrial, alleging that he wanted to exculpate Ma.
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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