NSB vows to protect foreign dignitaries

The National Security Bureau (NSB) and National Police Administration (NPA) yesterday said they would step up security measures for six embassies that had received phone calls warning their presidents or ambassadors not to participate in President Chen Shui-bian's (陳水扁) inauguration on May 20.

"The NPA has already increased the number of police patrolling and protecting the embassies and ambassadors' official residences," NPA Deputy Director-General Liu Shih-lin (劉世林) said. "We have also deployed police forces to protect 20 foreign delegations that will come to Taiwan to take part in President Chen's inauguration."

Under questioning by People First Party (PFP) Legislator Chin Huei-chu (秦慧珠) during the Legislative Yuan's National Defense Committee meeting yesterday, Liu and NSB's Third Department -- which is in charge of internal security -- Director Lin cheng-tung (林成東) confirmed that six ambassadors to Taiwan had received threatening telephone calls telling them and their presidents not to participate in the inauguration.

According to the NPA's information, Liu said that ambassadors from Panama, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua were threatened by unidentified people on the telephone on April 15 and 16, and had made reports to the Foreign Affairs Police.

Liu said that the NPA will deploy security guards for presidents coming from 11 countries and each foreign delegation will have a five-person security team.

"Foreign ambassadors can definitely feel at ease about their security," Liu added.

NSB Director-General Hsueh Shih-ming (薛石民) stressed that security on May 20 will be executed meticulously and the NSB was well-prepared to prevent any incident or accident from interrupting the presidential inauguration.

Asked about the possibility of terrorist attacks on May 20, Hsueh said the NSB has not received any intelligence indicating remote controlled aircraft or trench mortars would attack the Presidential Office.

"Although many rumors have been spread on the Internet, none have been confirmed by our intelligence services," Hsueh said.

"We have prepared surefire protection and security measures. The rumored aircraft will not be able to take off. And even if it does, we will never let it approach the Presidential Office."

Hsueh added that the NSB will use metal detectors at every entrance to the inauguration ceremony, and only people with invitations can join the ceremony. But he also said that participants will not be frisked before they enter the vicinity of the inauguration.

Whether or not to take the temperature of every participant to prevent a SARS outbreak will be decided by the Department of Health, Hsueh said.

Meanwhile, Chin said that the government "made a fuss" over Taoyuan businessman Lai Chu-hsing (賴注醒), who allegedly formulated a plot to assassinate Chen and former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝). Lai was arrested on Sunday for disturbing social order.

But Lin Yun-he (林雲鶴), the deputy director of the Ministry of Justice's Bureau of Investigation said Lai's handbills calling on people to join his assassination attempt was criminal, and that his words and actions have indicated that he was not simply a "thought criminal" but a real criminal likely to act on his statement.