Taipei District Court judges yesterday found former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator Diane Lee (李慶安) guilty of fraud and forgery over her possession of dual citizenship and sentenced her to two years in prison.
Lee was convicted of four counts of fraud in connection to her US citizenship. An original four-year sentence was commuted to two years.
Public officials are not allowed to hold dual citizenship. Lee has claimed she mistakenly believed that her US citizenship would automatically become invalid upon taking up a public position.
The judges dismissed the explanation, saying that if Lee had been unclear on the rules, she would not have called on former Taipei deputy mayor Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) to step down in 1994 when she questioned his status on the same issue.
Lee did not appear in court to hear the judgment, but issued a statement declaring her innocence and saying the salary she earned during her terms as legislator and Taipei City councilor were not illegal. Lee said she would appeal.
In January last year, the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office received confirmation from the US State Department that Lee’s US citizenship remained valid.
Prosecutors said that on personnel forms she filled out as a Taipei City councilor in 1994 and during her three terms as a lawmaker starting in 1998, Lee deliberately left blank the field asking whether she held citizenship from any country other than the Republic of China.
Prosecutors say that the more than NT$100 million (US$3 million) in income Lee earned during her terms as councilor and lawmaker were gained illegally.
Deputy Minister of the Interior Chien Tai-lang (簡太郎) yesterday said investigating the salary that Lee received as a city councilor was a matter for the Taipei City Council and the ministry. The criminal court proceedings against Lee are separate from any civil action concerning her salary.
Legislative Yuan Secretary-General Lin Hsi-shan (林錫山) said Lee was entitled to appeal and therefore the legislature shouldn’t take action on her salary as a legislator before a final judgment. Once it is final, they may pursue the matter, Lin said.
Lee resigned from the KMT in December 2008 and gave up her legislative seat last year.
Asked for comment yesterday, KMT caucus chief deputy secretary-general Lin Tsang-min (林滄敏) said Lee had shown some “negligence” during her time serving the public.
Lin said Lee should accept the ruling and the judgment should serve as a warning to all government officials reminding them to respect the law.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said the judgment showed that the KMT had been lying for Lee all along.
“I don’t want to kick a horse when it’s down, but the judgment shows that the DPP was right in accusing Lee of having dual citizenship. The KMT is obliged to apologize and explain why it helped Lee conceal the truth,” DPP Legislator Pan Meng-an (潘孟安) said.
DPP Legislator Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) called the judgment “delayed justice” and said the KMT should apologize for dragging out the case.
Additional reporting by Flora Wang,
Jenny W. Hsu and Staff Writer
DEFENDING DEMOCRACY: Taiwan shares the same values as those that fought in WWII, and nations must unite to halt the expansion of a new authoritarian bloc, Lai said The government yesterday held a commemoration ceremony for Victory in Europe (V-E) Day, joining the rest of the world for the first time to mark the anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. Taiwan honoring V-E Day signifies “our growing connections with the international community,” President William Lai (賴清德) said at a reception in Taipei on the 80th anniversary of V-E Day. One of the major lessons of World War II is that “authoritarianism and aggression lead only to slaughter, tragedy and greater inequality,” Lai said. Even more importantly, the war also taught people that “those who cherish peace cannot
STEADFAST FRIEND: The bills encourage increased Taiwan-US engagement and address China’s distortion of UN Resolution 2758 to isolate Taiwan internationally The Presidential Office yesterday thanked the US House of Representatives for unanimously passing two Taiwan-related bills highlighting its solid support for Taiwan’s democracy and global participation, and for deepening bilateral relations. One of the bills, the Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act, requires the US Department of State to periodically review its guidelines for engagement with Taiwan, and report to the US Congress on the guidelines and plans to lift self-imposed limitations on US-Taiwan engagement. The other bill is the Taiwan International Solidarity Act, which clarifies that UN Resolution 2758 does not address the issue of the representation of Taiwan or its people in
Taiwanese Olympic badminton men’s doubles gold medalist Wang Chi-lin (王齊麟) and his new partner, Chiu Hsiang-chieh (邱相榤), clinched the men’s doubles title at the Yonex Taipei Open yesterday, becoming the second Taiwanese team to win a title in the tournament. Ranked 19th in the world, the Taiwanese duo defeated Kang Min-hyuk and Ki Dong-ju of South Korea 21-18, 21-15 in a pulsating 43-minute final to clinch their first doubles title after teaming up last year. Wang, the men’s doubles gold medalist at the 2020 and 2024 Olympics, partnered with Chiu in August last year after the retirement of his teammate Lee Yang
The Philippines yesterday criticized a “high-risk” maneuver by a Chinese vessel near the disputed Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island, 黃岩島) in a rare incident involving warships from the two navies. The Scarborough Shoal — a triangular chain of reefs and rocks in the contested South China Sea — has been a flash point between the countries since China seized it from the Philippines in 2012. Taiwan also claims the shoal. Monday’s encounter took place approximately 11.8 nautical miles (22km) southeast” of the Scarborough Shoal, the Philippine military said, during ongoing US-Philippine military exercises that Beijing has criticized as destabilizing. “The Chinese frigate BN 554 was
RSS