Former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairman Shih Ming-teh's (
"They said he [Shih] did not write the letter, but I want to tell you that he did and I have the original to prove it," said Chen Li-chu (
Shih had written the original in pencil and had given it to Chen to smuggle out of prison, after which it had been transcribed in ink.
PHOTO: CNA
Chen said that her disclosure of the letter had nothing to do with the fundraising campaign Shih initiated to oust President Chen Shui-bian (
"I'm here because I can no longer accept his moral posturing nor put up with his family's verbal abuse," she said.
Ho De-fen (
Chen Li-chu yesterday said that even if Shih had been forced to write the letter on the paper, the one inside the jacket she brought him during his imprisonment must have been written voluntarily.
Chen said Shih returned the jacket, telling her that it was too small and needed adjustment. When she removed the lining, she discovered the letter inside addressed to Chiang and his wife, Soong Mei-ling (
Meanwhile, Sisy Chen (
Shih's second wife, Linda Gail Arrigo, who showed up at the legislature yesterday, told Chen Li-chu she did not think it was a good idea to reveal such an archaic personal tale to the public.
Chen Li-chu yesterday tearfully recounted getting pregnant at a young age by Shih, and alleged she had suffered verbal and physical abuse from Shih's family, including ruptured ribs and a head wound at the hands of Shih's brother, Shih Ming-hsin (
Describing Chen Li-chu as a "difficult person to get along with," Shih Ming-hsin said that the incident happened over 40 years ago when he was 13. He said that he hit her because she scolded his mother.
Chen Li-chu's daughter Teresa Shih (
"Even if we pull my father down, the sit-in he has organized would continue." she said. "We are here to straighten out the lies and slanderous attacks on my mother."
With regard to the NT$2 million (US$60,900) President Chen reportedly gave Shih Ming-teh to help pay for his daughter Shih Shueh-hui's (
Media reports, quoting DPP legislators, claimed that aside from the NT$2 million, Shih Ming-teh had borrowed another NT$1 million to NT$1.5 million from the president.
In a bid to allay the controversy over the money, Shih Ming-teh's cousin, Shih Chao-ron (
The check was written by Sisy Chen because she said Shih Ming-teh did not have that much money on hand.
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