The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has released a 40-page English-language report containing a compilation of “unfair judicial investigations and trials” suffered by its members who had served in the previous DPP administration.
The report, which included the cases made against former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) and dozens of other former or current government officials, was “not a political statement, but a research study which compiled facts and information,” Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), the executive director of the DPP’s Policy Research Committee, said yesterday.
The report was released on Monday and a Chinese-language version is to follow soon, Wu said.
The report said that it had focused primarily on “major cases in which DPP members have been subjected to arbitrary investigations launched by prosecutors or the Ministry of Justice’s Investigation Bureau, or indicted for abuses of power.”
The paper distinguished three types of unfair judicial treatments.
Tsai, former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) and former National Security Council secretary-general Chiou I-jen (邱義仁) were among the 25 cases classified as Type I, in which DPP members have already been acquitted or not indicted and the investigation is closed.
Most Type I cases were related to allegations of misconduct involving state affairs fund and special executive allowances, and involved several commissioners and mayors.
Eight other cases were labeled as Type II, meaning that the DPP members involved have begun, but not completed the trial process and have most recently been given a “not guilty” verdict. Type II cases included those of Chen Shui-bian, former deputy presidential secretary-general Chen Che-nan (陳哲男) and DPP Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (高志鵬).
Cases categorized as Type III “are those in which prosecutors and investigators obviously transgressed the principle of proportionality or displayed other forms of bias,” the report said.
Notable politicians involved in Type III cases included Yunlin County Commissioner Su Chih-fen (蘇治芬) and Chiayi County Commissioner Helen Chang (張花冠).
The compilation of data reflected “the double standards and lack of respect for fundamental human rights commonly displayed by prosecutors, police, investigators and judges in implementing the judicial process, as well as the lack of effective external monitoring of or balancing mechanisms for the judiciary,” the report said.
The report, which took a special task force nearly three weeks to complete, has been distributed to American Institute in Taiwan officials and US congressional aides in Washington, Wu said, adding that it will also be sent to observers of Taiwan in the international community.
DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) established the task force in May last year to gather information on unjust investigations and trials after taking the helm of the party.
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