Print

Mail

wiki links

MOJ won't take sides in surveillance campaign

Minister of Justice Chen Ding-nan (陳定南) yesterday said that prosecutors would immediately carry out phone taps on candidates alleged to have bought votes no matter which party they belonged to.

"I must emphasize again that our crackdown on bribery does not take holidays," Chen said. "Surveillance will be carried out on any candidate once we have evidence to prove that they were involved in any bribery incident."

Chen said that surveillance warrants for telephone conversations would be issued immediately under related regulations of the Communications Safeguards and Supervision Law (通訊保障及監察法) and the Article 143 and 144 of the Criminal Code.

Article 143 says, "A qualified voter who demands, agrees to accept or accepts a bribe or other improper benefit for refraining from exercising his right to vote or for exercising such right in a particular manner shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than three years."

Article 144 says, "A person who promises, offers or gives a bribe or other improper benefit to a qualified voter for refraining from exercising his right to vote or for exercising such right in a particular manner shall be punished with imprisonment for not more than five years."

Chen also took advantage of former Hualien prosecutor Yang Ta-chih's (楊大智) case to remind prosecutors not to make announcements without thinking twice.

"Yang's case was closed and he has been transferred to Taitung District Prosecutors' Office already so there is no need to discuss it now. The ministry never said that Yang would face severe punishment," Chen said.

Last summer during the Hualien County commissioner by-election, Minister of the Interior Yu Cheng-hsien (余政憲) launched a 24-hour roadside check of motorists to prevent vote-buying.

Yang complained and said that it was unconstitutional.
This story has been viewed 2007 times.