Taipei prosecutors yesterday summoned former Hsinchu Bureau of Cultural Affairs chief Chu Mei-feng (璩美鳳) to attend a hearing with prosecutors this afternoon at the Taipei District Prosecutors' Office.
"Chu has been requested to attend the hearing as a plaintiff," said Chen Hung-ta (陳宏達), the spokesman of the Taipei District Prosecutors' Office. "Tuesday's meeting between Chu and prosecutors will focus on questions surrounding her charges against Scoop Weekly (獨家報導)."
Last month Scoop distributed a VCD which purported to show Chu having sex with a married man.
TAIPEI TIMES FILE PHOTO
Chu has refused to confirm or deny that she was the woman in the VCD, even when interviewed by TV host Hu Chung-hsing (胡忠信) last week.
On Dec. 31, the 36-year-old former politician, formally filed libel charges against 19 people. Among those charged are employees of the tabloid-style magazine, including its president, Shen Yeh (沈野), and its publisher, Shen Jung (沈嶸) as well as Chung-ti Technology, the company which produced the VCD.
Chu's recent public comments have, however, helped the investigations into the scandal and her charges against the magazine, Chen said.
"Before she decided to face everybody," he said, "prosecutors had to worry about her safety and privacy when they interviewed her or contacted her for questions because we didn't want to hurt her again. We cannot ignore her during the investigation, however, since she is at the center of the scandal. It has been difficult to strike the right balance. Since she has become mentally stronger, however, and willing to face the world, prosecutors' jobs have become a lot easier."
A source, who wished to remain anonymous, said that Taipei Chief Prosecutor Lin Jinn-tsun (
Neither Chu's office nor that of her lawyer was receiving telephone calls yesterday.
Lin told the Taipei Times: "We handed the summons to her lawyer but I cannot tell you which prosecutor issued the summons, which room in the building the hearing will be held in or whether Chu has received the summons or not."
When asked last week if she was the woman in the video, Chu said: "It's very possible that it's me. It really did look like me. But I am not sure whether the VCD is a fake or not. What I can say is that the hidden camera was not installed by me. Nor did I arrange for it to be installed."
* The 40-minute VCD was issued with "Scoop Weekly" magazine in mid-December. The video shows a woman looking very similar to Chu having sex with a man resembling Tseng Chung-min, a married businesman.
* Chu still refuses to confirm or deny whether in fact it is her in the VCD.
* Kuo Yu-ling , Chu's "spiritual growth" instructor and her former friend, is the chief suspect in the case after she admitted installing the film-making equipment in Chu's apartment.
* Kuo's daughter, Kao Chun-chun, is suspected of passing the original videotape to "Scoop."
ECONOMIC RESILIENCE: Only 11.4 percent of Taiwan’s overseas investments last year were in China, and businesses are dispersing their investments elsewhere, Lai said China’s ambition to annex Taiwan is based on a desire to change the rules-based international order, rather than a desire for territorial gains, President William Lai (賴清德) said in an interview. During an appearance on the talk show The View With Catherine Chang, aired last night, Lai said China aimed to achieve hegemony, and that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait was an issue of worldwide concern. During the interview, Lai also discussed his “four-pillar plan” for peace and prosperity, which he first outlined in an article published by the Wall Street Journal on July 4 last year. That
‘REGRETTABLE’: TPP lawmaker Vivian Huang said that ‘we will continue to support Chairman Ko and defend his innocence’ as he was transferred to a detention facility The Taipei District Court yesterday ruled that Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) be detained and held incommunicado over alleged corruption dating to his time as mayor of Taipei. The ruling reversed a decision by the court on Monday morning that Ko be released without bail. After prosecutors on Wednesday appealed the Monday decision, the High Court said that Ko had potentially been “actively involved” in the alleged corruption and ordered the district court to hold a second detention hearing. Ko did not speak to reporters upon his arrival at the district court at about 9:10am yesterday to attend a procedural
Thirty Taiwanese firms, led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) and ASE Technology Holding Co (日月光投控), yesterday launched a silicon photonics industry alliance, aiming to accelerate the medium’s development and address the energy efficiency of artificial intelligence (AI) devices like data centers. As the world is ushering in a new AI era with tremendous demand for computing power and algorithms, energy consumption is emerging as a critical issue, TSMC vice president of integrated interconnect and packaging business C.K. Hsu (徐國晉) told a media briefing in Taipei. To solve this issue, it is essential to introduce silicon photonics and copackaged optics (CPO)
The High Court yesterday overturned a Taipei District Court decision to release Taiwan People’s Party Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and sent the case back to the lower court. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office on Saturday questioned Ko amid a probe into alleged corruption involving the Core Pacific City development project during his time as Taipei mayor. Core Pacific City, also known as Living Mall (京華城購物中心), was a shopping mall in Taipei’s Songshan District (松山) that has since been demolished. On Monday, the Taipei District Court granted a second motion by Ko’s attorney to release him without bail, a decision the prosecutors’ office appealed