The committee convened by the pan-blue-camp-dominated legislature to investigate the shooting of President Chen Shui-bian (
Two articles of the March 19 Shooting Truth Investigation Special Committee Statute (
"The committee formerly enjoyed prosecutorial powers of investigation and the same authority as the Legislative Yuan. This was against the Constitution and has been invalidated," Judicial Yuan Secretary-General Fan Kuang-chun (范光群) quoted the verdict as saying at a press conference yesterday.
The court's constitutional interpretation was the result of an application by 93 Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) lawmakers on Sept. 15.
The lawmakers hoped that the grand justices would rule the statute to be unconstitutional and fully suspend the committee's operations.
But this did not happen.
Referring to the request for suspension, the grand justices ruled, "It is not necessary to discuss whether or not to suspend [the committee] now that the interpretation is available."
In response to the verdict, committee member Yeh Yao-peng (
"The grand justices only care about which government office the committee should belong to," Yeh said. "Their decision will take us further and further away from the truth."
Article Eight and Article Thirteen were the two articles of the statute declared unconstitutional.
Article Eight gave committee members the same powers as prosecutors. The committee was able to summon anyone at any time for questioning and prevent any person from traveling outside the country, including the president and the vice president. Those who refused to comply could have been fined from NT$100,000 to NT$1 million and the fine imposed again if the refusal to cooperate persisted.
Article Thirteen required pros-ecutors to indict any person alleged by the committee to be involved in the case. These cases then had to be heard by the Taiwan High Court rather than lower courts.
But if the high court ruled in favor of the defendant, then the committee was authorized to ask the court to hear the case all over again with the same arguments and evidence and without amending the indictment.
Before yesterday's decision, the committee acted as an independent organization with unlimited administrative and judicial authority.
Such authority is claimed by no other government body.
The grand justices decided to classify the committee as an administrative office under the Legislative Yuan and ordered lawmakers to amend a number of articles to that effect. In the meantime, committee members are now required to be assigned by the legislative speaker. The original statute said the 17 committee members were to be nominated by lawmakers and approved by the president.
Article Four was also ordered to be changed by the grand justices.
That article states that the committee does not fall under government organs and cannot be supervised by them.
The grand justices instead said that the committee must be subject to the authority of the Legislative Yuan.
The grand justices said that Article 9-1 had to be amended as well, because it was inappropriate for committee members to have the power to ask any prosecutor to help with their investigations without the supervision of those prosecutors' superiors.
The grand justices also ruled that committee members must obtain approval from any prosecutor's superior officer before receiving their assistance. In addition, such prosecutors will not be able to utilize their authority as judicial officers while they are helping the committee.
Another offending part of the statute, Article 12-1, states, "The committee is responsible for reporting to and briefing lawmakers and Control Yuan members every three months."
The grand justices said the frequency with which the committee reports to the Control Yuan should be adjusted but did not suggest any particular timeframe.
As for another offending element, Article 15-1, the grand justices said that any changes to the composition of the committee had to be submitted to the legislative speaker for final approval before it takes effect.
In addition, the grand justices said that before the required changes are made to the statute, the committee shall not proceed with its investigations.
Also see story:
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS