Retired Supreme Court justice Yeh Sai-ying (葉賽鶯) was grilled by opposition legislators, having to answer more questions than the other three Council of Grand Justice nominees appearing in a question-and-answer session at the legislature yesterday.
People First Party Legislator Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀) alleged that Yeh had tried to conceal her membership of the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) arbitration committee in a questionnaire he asked the nominees to fill out.
In response, Yeh said she was invited to join the committee in the capacity of an impartial citizen and would no longer participate in any party activities should her nomination be accepted.
QUALIFICATIONS
Chang also questioned Yeh's qualifications for the position, saying she ranked the lowest among the eight nominees in terms of her academic background and her experience with judicature.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Diane Lee (李慶安) asked Yeh, who once served as secretary-general of a civil organization aimed at promoting the nation's bid to join the UN using the name "Taiwan," to explain to legislators her views on Taiwanese independence.
Yeh first tried to shun the question by saying that her stance on the issue was a matter of freedom of speech, but later she said she supports a flexible and pragmatic strategy with regard to the nation's UN bid.
PRO-INDEPENDENCE
Yen is also a member of the pro-independence Northern Taiwan Society. When KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) was ruled not guilty of corruption in his special mayoral allowance case last month, the group slammed the court's verdict.
When asked by Lee to comment on it, Yeh yesterday said she was not involved in the society's actions following the ruling.
Another question-and-answer session with the other four Council of Grand Justice nominees is scheduled for next Wednesday and there will be a confirmation vote on the nominees the following day.
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