Former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) will now be identified by his personal identification number, 1020, as he began serving his prison sentence at Taipei Prison on Thursday after being convicted on corruption charges.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) visited Chen Shui-bian yesterday morning and said she was shocked when to see the former president with his head shaved in accordance with prison regulations for inmates.
Chen Shui-bian was more calm than her, Chen Ting-fei said, saying that he was the one who comforted her, noting that prior to his transfer to the prison in Gueishan Township (龜山), Taoyuan County, Chen Shui-bian had been detained for about 700 days at the Taipei Detention Center in Tucheng City (土城), Taipei County, so he had actually just changed location.
Photo: Chou Min-hong, Taipei Times
“It’s all about politics, not justice,” Chen Ting-fei quoted Chen Shui-bian as saying.
Local media reported that when asked by a prison officer about his past experience — a routine question for the purpose of arranging suitable work for inmates — Chen Shui-bian replied, “I have served as president” and said his field of expertise was “administration.”
Chen Shui-bian appeared calm during his first day in prison and ate all the food he was served for his first dinner there, according to a prison officer. The meal consisted of rice, stewed ribs with herbs, fried dwarf beans, tofu miso soup and a coconut tart.
It was arranged that he would share a 1.2 ping (3.96m2) cell with another inmate. Prison officials said the former president’s cellmate was convicted of fraud and has a mild temperament and no political inclinations.
The officials promised that the man “will not lose his temper” even if Chen Shui-bian annoys him every day.
According to sources familiar with prison affairs, the man was carefully selected to help take care of the former president and help him quickly adapt to prison life.
A senior judge said Chen Shui-bian’s time in prison would probably amount to 17 years. This was calculated based on a 10 percent reduction of his total 19-year sentence for accepting bribes in the Longtan (龍潭) land deal and the appointment of a chairman at Taipei Financial Center Corp. The time he spent at the Taipei Detention Center could also be counted toward the sentences.
Chen Shui-bian’s wheelchair-bound wife, Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍), who was also sentenced to a combined 19 years in the same cases, will likely be ordered next week to report to prosecutors in preparation for imprisonment.
In an interview with ERA News, former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) said that Thursday marked the most embarrassing and miserable point in Chen Shui-bian’s life.
She said that the former president’s imprisonment was a tragedy for him, his family and Taiwan’s democracy. She also argued that even if Chen Shui-bian were at fault, he should not have been made to take all the blame.
Citigroup Inc plans to exit retail banking in 13 markets across Asia, and the region of Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The bank would instead operate its consumer-banking franchise in both regions from four wealth centers in Singapore, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and London, it said yesterday in a statement. The move is part of an ongoing review of the company’s strategy by chief executive officer Jane Fraser, who took over last month. “This positions us to capture the strong growth and attractive returns the wealth-management business offers through these important hubs,” Fraser said. Citigroup is to exit its consumer
‘IMPORTANT PARTNER’: The new guidelines aim to encourage US engagement with Taiwan, which reflects a deepening relationship, the US Department of State said The US Department of State on Friday issued new guidelines governing US officials’ interactions with their Taiwanese counterparts, a move welcomed by Taipei as turning a new page in bilateral relations. Shortly before leaving office, then-US secretary of state Mike Pompeo on Jan. 9 announced the cancelation of previous contact guidelines, which he said were “self-imposed restrictions” that attempted to appease the Chinese Communist Party regime in Beijing. However, the status of the guidelines has been unclear since US President Joe Biden entered the White House. Asked about the issue during a legislative session on Thursday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu
CONFIDENTIAL: The trip had not been made public until just before ex-senator Chris Dodd, and ex-state department officials Richard Armitage and James Steinberg arrived The government yesterday welcomed an “unofficial” delegation sent by US President Joe Biden, while another delegation led by US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry was headed to Shanghai. Biden’s first delegation to Taiwan is made up of former US senator Chris Dodd, and former US deputy secretaries of state Richard Armitage and James Steinberg. They are to stay in Taiwan until tomorrow. Their arrival, on a chartered flight, had been kept confidential until media reported the visit yesterday morning, after which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a short notice that they were expected to arrive at 2:40pm. The flight landed at
‘IDEAL FIT’: A report on Sunday said that the Canadian government threatened to pull its support and funding from the HFX if the award was given to the president The government would respect the decision of the organizer of the John McCain Prize for Leadership in Public Service on whether it plans to award a prize to President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday. The statement was issued after US Web site Politico reported a day earlier that the Canadian government had warned the Halifax International Security Forum (HFX) not to give the award to Tsai for fear of provoking Beijing. “The ministry believes that if the Halifax International Security Forum confers the prize upon President Tsai, it would be an affirmation and honor for both
RSS