■Accident
Five found dead at apartment
Four men and one woman employed at the same high technology company were found dead yesterday in their rented apartment in what authorities suspect was a case of carbon monoxide poisoning. The company, headquartered in the northern city of Chupei, was alerted yesterday morning when none of the five showed up for work. When police broke into the apartment, they found one man lying naked in the bathroom, the faucet still dripping. "The gas and water were still on [when the victims were found]," said prosecutor Chung Hsiao-ya of the Hsinchu District Court.
■ Crime
Su to get polygraph test
The Kaohsiung Prosecutor's Office plans to give a polygraph test to Su Hui-cheng (蘇惠珍), vice chairman and principal shareholder of the Zanadau Development Corp, as investigators have failed to make the bribery suspect reveal details of a questionable bank loan she obtained in 1994. Su was taken into custody by the Kaohsiung District Court Dec. 30 after being interrogated by prosecutors for 10 hours for allegedly acquiring illegal bank loans for a Zanadau land development project through bribery, fraud and profiteering. According to the prosecutor's office, between June and July 1994, Su used NT$390 million to acquire several pieces of farmland in Kaohsiung County.
■ Military
China protests joint drill
China protested yesterday against US plans to participate in Taiwan's biggest annual military exercises for the first time since 1979, saying such action "damages China-US relations." "We have read relevant reports from the media and I want to point out here that any kind of military cooperation or exchange between Taiwan and the US is a violation of the three Sino-US joint communiques and also damages China-US relations," foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue (章啟月) said. "The Chinese side has already made solemn representation to the US side urging it to abide by its commitment made to the Chinese side on the question of Taiwan and stop any military exchange with Taiwan." Taiwan Vice Defense Minister Chen Chao-min (陳肇敏) last week confirmed a media report that US military personnel would take part in the Han Kuang 19 exercise.
■ Politics
Lien unveils platform
Opposition KMT Chairman Lien Chan (連戰) outlined yesterday for the first time the party's platform for the 2004 presidential election, which envisions eight key development directions for "remaking Taiwan." Lien divulged his party's platform, codenamed "Project Happiness 2004," in an exclusive interview with Japan's Mainichi Shimbun daily. According to Lien, Taiwan has gradually lost its competitive edge since its first-ever peaceful transition of power between different political parties more than two years ago. Lien said the 2004 presidential election has become a crunch time for the opposition party to reverse the nation's current downward trend. "Project Happiness 2004" offers policy initiatives in eight major categories -- ensuring political stability, establishing what he called "quality democracy," cultivating peaceful cross-strait relations, upgrading government efficiency, boosting morale in the civil service, revitalizing the economy, promoting cultural development and enhancing social security.
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