One day after saying it had indefinitely suspended its allegedly scandal-tainted anchorwoman Kelly Hsueh (薛楷莉), the local cable TV station TVBS changed its story yesterday and said it had granted her "paid leave."
The Council of Labor Affairs (勞委會) said an indefinite suspension, which amounts to life sentences for most employees, violates the regulations stipulated in the Labor Standards Law (勞基法).
The alleged exploitation of a businessman from Japan by Hsueh has dominated the headlines of local electronic and print media for more than a week.
TVBS has removed Hsueh's name from the list of its anchors on its Web site and, at the same time, continues its investigation into other allegations that she faked her educational background and committed credit-card fraud.
The Japanese businessman, identified as E. Tokuhara (德原榮玉), has also become the prey of interview-seeking journalists in Tokyo. He issued a statement Wednesday to express his concern for Hsueh, which was the first time he had officially spoken about the scandal.
Tokuhara had initially planned to come to Taiwan Wednesday night for medical treatment of a neck injury, but he canceled his trip for fear of further stirring the media frenzy.
As the local media concentrates on unearthing information on Hsueh's alleged improprieties, the roles of Toku-hara and the "go-between," Yao Hsu-teng (姚旭燈), a Japan-based painter, are also being looked into.
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