The Ministry of Justice’s Investigation Bureau yesterday said allegations brought by the Mainland Affairs Council against former deputy council minister Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀) involved leaks of classified information to China, as other sources said that Chang could face trial for treason.
Sources said that Chang might have divulged information classified as “confidential” under the National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法) in two separate instances.
The act classifies information under three designations: top secret, secret and confidential.
Photo: George Tsorng, Taipei Times
“Confidential” applies to information that would cause identifiable damage to national security.
Sources said the bureau would send a request today to the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office that prosecutors open an investigation of Chang on suspicion of treason.
Meanwhile, the controversy over Chang’s resignation last week showed no sign of dying.
The council and the Presidential Office yesterday disputed Chang’s allegation that National Security Council (NSC) Secretary-General King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) had ordered his removal and that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) did not know about King’s move in advance.
In an interview with the Chinese-language United Daily News published yesterday, Chang said that Mainland Affairs Council Minister Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦) had told him on Thursday last week that “a superior” wanted him to leave his post.
“When I asked who the superior was, Wang said it was King,” Chang told the paper.
Chang said he asked Wang if Ma knew about the request and Wang said no, but assured him that arrangements would be made for Chang to become chairman of a company.
Chang said he had no idea what “national secrets” he was supposed to have leaked, although he did have some suspicions.
“I think I might know what it is about. But I cannot reveal it now, since if I did, it would constitute a leak of confidential information,” he told the paper.
He said he felt that he had been “sold out by his superiors.”
However, Wang told a news conference that he had not told Chang who the “superior” was when he ordered his deputy to step down.
He said he had reported to Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) and King before talking with Chang and had obtained their consent.
He did not report to Ma directly because he “believed the premier and the NSC secretary-general would do so,” Wang said.
Separately, Presidential Office spokesperson Ma Wei-kuo (馬瑋國) said the president had been informed by the premier and King of the decision to ask Chang to resign.
The president had also asked Wang about the matter after being informed, and supported Chang’s removal and an investigation, Ma Wei-kuo said.
As for why Chang has been offered a corporate position when he was being asked to step down and was suspected of leaking information, Wang said it was to allow some “leeway” and “to protect Chang’s rights and reputation because there was no confirmation yet that he had leaked secrets.”
Wang said he could not provide any details about the alleged national security leaks.
He also declined to answer questions about a tip-off from “the outside” about Chang’s actions that the council reportedly received in the second half of last month.
When asked who would be held accountable if the allegations of national security leaks by Chang proved to be true or if the allegations were false, Wang said that as his job as minister was directly tied to the results of the investigation, he would report to the public once the case is closed.
Lai Chung-chiang (賴中強), an attorney and the convener of the Democratic Front Against the Cross-strait Trade in Services Agreement, said King had violated the Constitution if he was the one who ordered Chang to step down.
“Even if the president knew about the decision, it would still be a violation if it was King who made the move,” Lai said.
The Constitution stipulates that ministers and commission chairs “shall be appointed by the president of the republic upon the recommendation of the president of the Executive Yuan,” Lai said.
Decommissioning should follow the same process, Lai said.
While Wang has denied it was King who had issued the order, he did not clarify who had done so either, referring to the person simply as “the superior.”
Chang and Wang’s remarks clearly contradict each other, so “obviously someone is lying, and I would expect the Legislative Yuan and the Control Yuan to probe the matter and King’s suspected overreaching,” Lai said.
King issued a statement late last night saying he might take legal action against anyone who defames his reputation.
Additional reporting by Shih Hsiu-chuan
PATROL PARTNERS: The ‘Chiayi’ and the ‘Penghu’ departed for a two-day joint patrol of Palau’s exclusive economic zone, the CGA’s second diplomatic visit to the country The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) set a record for its southernmost deployment of a coast guard vessel as the vessels Chiayi and the Penghu reached Palau’s Pulo Anna Island on Saturday in a cooperative exercise between the two countries. The island, about 217 nautical miles (401km) southwest of Koror in the Palauan state of Sonsorol and 1,220 nautical miles from Taiwan’s southernmost point, Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), is the furthest south a CGA vessel has sailed. The two vessels are in Palau for the coast guard’s second diplomatic visit to the country. They docked at Malakal Harbor on Tuesday last week. The coast guard
The government is monitoring online rumors that a pneumonic plague outbreak has spread from Russia into China, and it might enhance quarantine measures, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday. During a legislative meeting, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said that rumors had circulated that the disease had spread across several Chinese provinces. He asked Cho whether the government was prepared to prevent the disease spreading to Taiwan, given the volume of traffic between the two sides, and how concerned the government was about the alleged outbreak. The Ministry of Health and Welfare had implemented border quarantine measures after briefing the Executive
EAST OF GUAM: Tropical Storm Champi is forecast to strengthen into a typhoon, but its effect on Taiwan is uncertain due to the presence of a high-pressure system Tropical Storm Champi formed yesterday and has the potential to increase in strength, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Forecasters are closely monitoring a Pacific high-pressure system that would dictate whether the storm turns north or moves toward Taiwan next week, the CWA said. The most likely scenario is that it turns northward after passing the Ryukyu Islands, CWA forecaster Cheng Chieh-jen (鄭傑仁) said. As of 8pm yesterday, Champi was east of Guam moving west-northwest at 20kph, CWA data showed. It had maximum sustained winds near the center of 72kph and gusts of up to 101kph, the data showed. If the Pacific high-pressure system
RIGHT TO DIPLOMACY: Under the UN Charter, every state has the right to conduct foreign policy free from external pressure, Belize said in a statement Belize and Paraguay on Monday condemned Beijing sanctions over their countries’ ties with Taiwan, saying China’s actions create unnecessary tensions. Earlier on Monday, Beijing announced sanctions against Paraguayan Minister of Information and Communication Technologies Gustavo Villate and Belizean Minister of Foreign Affairs Francis Fonseca. The Paraguayan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it rejected the sanctions, writing on X that they created unnecessary friction. It added that it reaffirmed its support for Taiwan and its commitment to democratic values and principles. Villate told the Spanish-language Paraguayan daily ABC Color the sanctions were “predictable” and linked them to several cooperation projects between Taiwan and Paraguay. The projects
RSS