The Ministry of Justice said yesterday it did not give former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) special treatment by hospitalizing him on Saturday.
Minister of Justice Wang Ching-feng (王清峰) told reporters during a visit to the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus on Friday that whether Chen was allowed to seek medical help at a hospital escorted by law enforcement authorities depended on the assessment of doctors at the detention center and that she could not interfere in the case.
After Chen was hospitalized on Saturday, Wang made a few telephone calls to legislators to notify them of the matter.
PHOTO: WANG MIN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES
This, however, did not constitute political meddling with judicial affairs, as several pundits have alleged on TV talk shows, she said a statement issued by the ministry.
On Thursday, after appearing weak at a court hearing to decide whether his detention should be extended, Chen issued a statement saying he would not appeal any verdict in the case and would immediately dismiss his attorneys and stop calling witnesses.
He also said he would not eat or drink until next Sunday to show his support for the DPP rally scheduled for that day to protest the government’s China-leaning policies.
Chen has been on two hunger strikes since his incarceration, but ended them after his wife and family pleaded with him to start eating.
If the former president is physically able to appear in court on his next trial tomorrow, he could directly inform Presiding Judge Tsai Shou-hsun (蔡守訓) of his decision to dismiss his lawyers.
Su Chih-cheng (蘇志誠), a top aide to former president Lee Teng-hui (李登輝), and former Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Ma Yung-cheng (馬永成), have been summoned for tomorrow’s session, where they will be questioned on their handling of the presidential “state affairs fund.”
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
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COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai