The Ministry of Justice's Bureau of Investigation yesterday said it will summon former president Lee Teng-hui (
The Fengtien and Dangyang committees were set up to handle secret diplomatic efforts and conduct diplomatic research.
"Lee's position in the scandal has not been decided yet, so we will summon him as a witness," a senior special agent investigating the case said.
"However, if we can confirm the testimony of former NSB chief accountant Hsu Ping-chiang (
Meanwhile, the agent would not confirm a rumor that prosecutors and special agents have twice met Lee in secret over the scandal.
The two committees are at the center of allegations of money laundering, leaks of classified information and embezzlement.
On Aug. 14, the investigation bureau asked the public to help locate the suspect who is believed to have leaked classified information from the two committees to lawmakers and the media last year.
Former NSB chief cashier Liu Kuan-chun (
Hsu and Liu Tai-ying allegedly embezzled US$4.5 million from a US$10.58 million secret fund of the two committees used to secure Taiwan's diplomatic relationship with South Africa in 1994.
An investigation found that the NSB paid the amount to South Africa to secure the relationship between two countries on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in May 1994.
On April 4, 1999, the ministry returned a total of US$10.7 million, including interest, to the bureau.
Hsu allegedly asked Liu Kuan-chun to deposit US$7.5 million in the Taiwan Research Institute's bank account. Liu Tai-ying serves as the institute's president and Lee its honorary president.
Liu Tai-ying allegedly wired the money to Ruentex chairman Yin Yen-liang's (
Prosecutors have not discovered the whereabouts of the missing US$4.5 million.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique