First lady Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) has been hard pressed over the past few weeks to defend herself against a spate of allegations ranging from political improprieties to financial irregularities.
Wu has been under fire for alleged improprieties with her investments after putting her assets and those of President Chen Shui-bian (
Fundamentally, there is no law in place restricting the first lady from using her own money to make more money. However, in a bid to put the rumors to bed, the first family has announced that it will donate a total of NT$4 million (US$125,300) to eight charities and disadvantaged groups.
The Presidential Office made public the details of Wu's profits from selling her stocks and mutual fund holdings as promised, hoping to end weeks of controversy caused by her investments.
Wu was also accused of having illegally received Sogo Department Store gift vouchers as a token of appreciation for her involvement in the company's controversial transfer of operational control.
To prove her innocence, Wu has filed a private criminal complaint against the accuser.
Chen himself has also put his career on the line, saying that he was willing to step down if his wife or any member of the first family had improperly received and used the gift vouchers.
The Presidential Office dismissed an allegation that Wu was involved in a proposed personnel reshuffle at state-run Taiwan Fertilizer Co last year. They said Wu knew nothing about the matter, nor was she involved in it.
Born into a well-off family in Madou, Tainan County, in 1952, Wu did not know her life would take such a dramatic turn after she met Chen in high school. Despite her family's objections, Wu married Chen in February 1975.
While the couple thought they would live a peaceful life with Chen practicing law, the 1979 "Kaohsiung Incident" forever altered their destiny and changed the course of Taiwan's democracy movement.
Wu encouraged Chen to commit himself to Taiwan's democratic development and supported his volunteering to defend Huang Hsin-chieh (
Chen quit his law practice to enter politics in 1981 when he was elected as a Taipei City councilor. In 1985, Chen lost the Tainan County commissioner election and shortly thereafter, Wu was crippled when she was run over three times by a three-wheeled truck.
In 1986, not long after Wu was discharged from hospital and at a time when she desperately needed the support of her family, Chen was sentenced to one year in prison for libel. That same year, Wu ran in the legislative election and won. When Chen was released in February 1987, he served as Wu's legislative assistant until he himself was elected as a legislator in 1989.
In September 2002, the US House of Representatives invited Wu to Capitol Hill, where she was awarded the "Democracy Service Medal" by the National Endowment for Democracy. Later that year, Wu received the International Excellence in Leadership Award from the Canadian Paraplegic Association. It marked the first time ever the honor was awarded to a non-Canadian. In 2003, Wu was selected as one of the inspirational "Asian Heroes" in the April 28 issue of Time magazine.
DPP Legislator Lan Mei-chin (
"When my brother-in-law was arrested for his role in the `Kaohsiung Incident,' nobody dared to talk to us, not to mention defend him," she said.
"It was very courageous of Wu to encourage Chen to serve as my brother-in-law's defense lawyer. She said she was inspired by my brother-in-law's decision to stand up to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) authoritarian regime," Lan said.
Lan and Wu then developed a close relationship after both of their husbands were sent to jail in 1986. Huang Tien-fu was the founder of Formosa magazine, of which Chen was the director. The two were imprisoned for publishing an article which said the doctoral dissertation of Elmer Fung (馮滬祥), then one of the KMT's rising stars, was a work of plagiarism.
Commenting on the recent deluge of allegations lodged against Wu, Lan said that she believed the first lady welcomed any constructive suggestions and criticism. However, she thought it was unfair to make groundless allegations against Wu.
"If the accusers had any solid evidence to substantiate their claims, they should have presented it in court instead of using the media to spread rumors," she said.
Lan said that the only change that she had detected in Wu over the years was that her health had deteriorated markedly, preventing her from indulging in pastimes such as shopping and going to movie theaters.
Describing Wu as straightforward, stout-hearted and fervent, Tainan County Commissioner Su Huan-chih (
"She might offend some people unknowingly, but those who know her realize that is just the way she is," said Su, who served as Chen's assistant when the president was a Taipei City councilor and a legislator.
Su dismissed the rumors that Wu loves money and takes an active interest in politics, saying the first lady was more interested in living her own life.
Because Wu comes from a very wealthy family, Su said she is accustomed to an easy and well-to-do lifestyle.
Su attributed the recent string of allegations against Wu to her enthusiasm to help people. Although there is nothing wrong with being benevolent, Su said that he thought it would cause Wu less trouble if she realized the sensitivity of her role.
A year-long renovation of Taipei’s Bangka Park (艋舺公園) began yesterday, as city workers fenced off the site and cleared out belongings left by homeless residents who had been living there. Despite protests from displaced residents, a city official defended the government’s relocation efforts, saying transitional housing has been offered. The renovation of the park in Taipei’s Wanhua District (萬華), near Longshan Temple (龍山寺), began at 9am yesterday, as about 20 homeless people packed their belongings and left after being asked to move by city personnel. Among them was a 90-year-old woman surnamed Wang (王), who last week said that she had no plans
TO BE APPEALED: The environment ministry said coal reduction goals had to be reached within two months, which was against the principle of legitimate expectation The Taipei High Administrative Court on Thursday ruled in favor of the Taichung Environmental Protection Bureau in its administrative litigation against the Ministry of Environment for the rescission of a NT$18 million fine (US$609,570) imposed by the bureau on the Taichung Power Plant in 2019 for alleged excess coal power generation. The bureau in November 2019 revised what it said was a “slip of the pen” in the text of the operating permit granted to the plant — which is run by Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) — in October 2017. The permit originally read: “reduce coal use by 40 percent from Jan.
China might accelerate its strategic actions toward Taiwan, the South China Sea and across the first island chain, after the US officially entered a military conflict with Iran, as Beijing would perceive Washington as incapable of fighting a two-front war, a military expert said yesterday. The US’ ongoing conflict with Iran is not merely an act of retaliation or a “delaying tactic,” but a strategic military campaign aimed at dismantling Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and reshaping the regional order in the Middle East, said National Defense University distinguished adjunct lecturer Holmes Liao (廖宏祥), former McDonnell Douglas Aerospace representative in Taiwan. If
‘SPEY’ REACTION: Beijing said its Eastern Theater Command ‘organized troops to monitor and guard the entire process’ of a Taiwan Strait transit China sent 74 warplanes toward Taiwan between late Thursday and early yesterday, 61 of which crossed the median line in the Taiwan Strait. It was not clear why so many planes were scrambled, said the Ministry of National Defense, which tabulated the flights. The aircraft were sent in two separate tranches, the ministry said. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday “confirmed and welcomed” a transit by the British Royal Navy’s HMS Spey, a River-class offshore patrol vessel, through the Taiwan Strait a day earlier. The ship’s transit “once again [reaffirmed the Strait’s] status as international waters,” the foreign ministry said. “Such transits by
RSS