Former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) suffers from sleep apnea — a disorder in which breathing completely stops or is intermittent for periods of about 10 to 30 seconds — and paranoid delusions of being persecuted, Taipei Veterans General Hospital (TVGH) Superintendent Lin Fang-yue (林芳郁) said yesterday.
The imprisoned former president, who is serving a 17-and-a-half-year sentence for corruption, has been in the hospital since Sept. 21 for further examination.
The TVGH is a subordinate of the Veterans Affairs Committee. Lin was requested by lawmakers to present a report at a legislative Foreign and National Defense Committee meeting yesterday.
In response to a question by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) on whether Chen is suffering from sleep apnea and delusions of being persecuted, Lin said: “He has both.”
Lin added that the former president has recovered from a urinary tract infection and a slight fever.
“Do you know his current weight?” Chiu asked.
In response, Lin said Chen has lost 10 kilograms since being in prison, adding that the hospital hoped that better food provided by Chen’s family would improve his weight.
“As a medical expert, do you think Chen should be granted medical parole?” Chiu asked, to which Lin responded that medical parole could not be decided by doctors.
Lin added that a complete assessment of Chen’s health would be released in seven to 10 days.
The TVGH medical team will today also conduct a special report on Chen’s condition, at the invitation of the legislative Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee, DPP spokesperson Lin Chun-hsien (林俊憲) said.
“All we know is that Chen’s health is deteriorating. It’s unfortunate that the hospital has failed to provide a clear report on the former president’s health despite it being an issue of public concern that has provoked much speculation,” Lin said.
Lin said the DPP is still calling for Chen to get medical parole.
Chen’s family have complained about not being updated on the former president’s health.
‘NO SECURITY RISK’: The Railway Bureau reassured the public that the technicians’ activities were limited to technical guidance and did not involve sensitive systems The Railway Bureau yesterday said it had invited eight Chinese technicians to assist with an airport MRT construction project. The bureau issued the confirmation after an Internet user said Chinese nationals had entered the construction zone of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 3 project. They asked why “individuals from an enemy state” were allowed access to such a major national infrastructure project, which raised serious concerns over Taiwan’s industrial safety, sensitive systems and information security. The bureau’s Northern Region Engineering Branch Office said subcontractor Taiwan Handle Industrial Co (台灣手把工業) of the Taoyuan airport MRT’s “Contract No. CU05 Project A14 Station Civil, MEP &
The National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology yesterday showcased its locally developed variants of the Vision 60 robotic patrol dog, which it plans to deploy on the nation’s outlying territories in the South China Sea. The variants were produced under the Joint Lab project — created by the institute and domestic companies — and assembled with domestically produced motors, lenses and artificial intelligence (AI) systems alongside licensed tech from the US, Missile and Rocket Systems Research Division deputy director Jen Kuo-kang (任國光) told the media event at a military base in Taipei’s Dazhi (大直) area. Taiwan has built up its strengths
NOT IMMEDIATE: Taiwan has a chance to appeal the proposed 10 percent tariff before it starts, while other countries face a 12.5 percent tariff from the trade office Taiwan is among 60 economies determined by the US to have failed to impose or enforce a ban on the importation of goods produced with forced labor, according to a notice released on Tuesday by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR), which proposed imposing an additional 10 percent or more tariff on them. The USTR in a statement said that following an investigation, it had determined under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 that the failure of the 60 economies to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor is
TIT-FOR-TAT: The US allegedly revoked the visa of a Chinese national working at Xinhua News Agency in the US in response to Beijing’s expulsion of Vivian Wang The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China for expelling a New York Times correspondent from Beijing following the newspaper’s interview with President William Lai (賴清德), saying the move highlighted Beijing’s suppression of press freedom and its threat to international news media. Taiwan has noted a series of recent incidents in which Beijing used similar tactics to “threaten and pressure international media outlets and journalists,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said in a statement. “This concerns not only press freedom and freedom of expression, but also the safety of journalists, and Taiwan and relevant partners are paying close attention to the situation,” she
RSS