Former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) and a lawmaker yesterday filed separate charges of treason against former vice president Lien Chan (連戰), accusing him of breaching national security by attending a Chinese military parade marking the end of World War II in Beijing on Thursday.
Lu filed the charges at the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office in Taipei, calling Lien a traitor for betraying the nation and trampling on the dignity and honor of Taiwanese.
She also demanded that Lien be banned from leaving the country.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) Legislator Chou Ni-an (周倪安), leading the party’s youth wing, filed similar charges at the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office.
She demanded that the government stop paying Lien an “overly generous pension” of NT$370,000 per month for the various government posts he held throughout his career.
“Lien has sold out Taiwan for his own personal glory. He attended the event in Beijing by sitting in a section for VIPs from the ‘Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan Regions.’ His action has belittled and insulted Taiwanese sovereignty and the dignity of our people,” Chou said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
“At the military parade, Lien saluted and applauded the Chinese People’s Liberation Army troops and their weapons, many of which are killing machines meant to be used against Taiwanese,” she said. “This is an outrage to our armed forces and Lien will be repudiated by people of all political stripes and ethnic groups here in Taiwan.”
Citing a ruling in a case involving Chinese spy Zhen Xiaojiang (鎮小江), Chou said the court’s decision affirmed that the Chinese communist regime is still “an enemy of the state.”
“Lien was a former vice president, but he is now colluding with Chinese leaders to trumpet and promote propaganda for an enemy state,” she said. “Lien has therefore violated the National Security Act (國家安全法) and the Criminal Code by conspiring and colluding with a foreign state intending to start a war against our nation.”
Lu said Lien should be charged and prosecuted, because he has betrayed Taiwanese and infringed on the nation’s sovereignty.
Taiwan has seen many cases of espionage wherein state secrets are leaked to China because of the judicial system’s failure to uphold the National Security Act and the lenient sentences given to offenders, Lu said.
“Lien is not the only one. There are many retired generals and high-ranking military officials who are also betraying our nation by cozying up to China. I urge them to exercise self-restraint and obey the law on national security,” she said.
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