A woman who was named in a sex scandal that forced then-Presidential Office secretary-general John Chang (章孝嚴) to resign from his post in disgrace formally hit back at her accusers yesterday, launching a lawsuit against the China Times Express.
After attending the first court hearing yesterday in a defamation lawsuit she brought against the newspaper, Wang Hsiao-chan (王筱蟬) reiterated that she had never engaged in any sort of extramarital relationship with Chang.
Chang resigned from his post on Dec. 22 last year, a day after the Chinese-language evening newspaper Power News (
Chang admitted that due to "personal factors," he was no longer able to properly fulfill his duties, and that he had therefore requested permission to leave office as soon as possible.
Wang said her colleagues will testify that she was attending a meeting at her company on Nov. 10, when Chang allegedly signed a note in a local five-star hotel promising to divorce his wife.
The note was the prime evidence used by the press in breaking the story.
Wang said she had named the China Times Express in her lawsuit because of an article that appeared in its Dec. 29 edition, in which a photograph of the note in question appeared, with her name on it.
The name had been partially obscured, but the newspaper claimed it had used a computer algorithm to recreate her name and back up its story.
Wang added she had enough evidence to disprove claims of her alleged trysts with Chang, as has been reported in the media.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College