The son of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) yesterday demanded an apology and threatened to take legal action against Next Magazine after it alleged in its latest issue that the junior Chen had solicited the services of a prostitute.
Chen Chih-chung (陳致中), who came from Kaohsiung yesterday to visit his father at the Taipei Detention Center in Tucheng (土城), Taipei County, called the allegation “preposterous.”
His wife, Huang Jui-ching (黃睿靚), said that her husband was at home at the time the magazine claims he was in the company of a prostitute.
In yesterday’s issue, the magazine alleged that Chen Chih-chung habitually frequents prostitutes and that his car had been observed in Kaohsiung in the early hours of July 3 picking up a long-haired young woman and taking her to a motel.
The magazine received four fragments of a recorded telephone conversation one week later, the report said. It said the man in the tape sounded like Chen Chih-chung, and the time of recording was around the time of the incident.
In the conversation, the report said the man, ostensibly talking with a pimp, gave the brand and make of his vehicle as well as its license plate number.
The magazine claims it later contacted the prostitute, “Nicole,” who confirmed that she had entertained Chen Chih-chung on July 3. Nicole said she did not say anything because she did not think anyone would believe her.
Although Chen denied the allegation when the magazine called him for comment, it still ran the story.
Chen said he did not have the energy to solicit prostitutes because campaign activities kept him very busy. He is running as an independent candidate for the Greater Kaohsiung council in November.
“I’m as tired as an old dog at the end of the day,” he said.
Chen Chih-chung said he lent his car to a friend, Mr Lin, on the day in question. Lin yesterday confirmed he had borrowed the car from the former president’s son. However, one of his friends from Taipei was driving it on the day of the incident, he said. Lin described his friend as a 30-something married man with glasses and a crew cut, someone who looks like Chen Chih-chung.
Lin said he confronted his friend after the news broke and said that he admitted soliciting a prostitute on July 3.
Chen Chih-chung said he would first discuss the issue with his lawyer before deciding whether to take legal action, adding that they would first attempt to find the source of the tipoff. He said the story was one-sided, sensationalist and presented no solid evidence to prove he was the person in the car.
Huang described the magazine as a “gossipy tabloid whose only mission is to create havoc.”
She said it did not deserve any further comment.
“It’s utterly detestable,” she said. “If they want to frame my husband, they should at least find someone who looks more like him.”
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday remained low-key on the allegations.
DPP spokesperson Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) said he did not believe Chen was “that kind of person.”
“We believe that the truth as to whether these allegations are true or false will come out in the legal process” should the former president’s son file a defamation lawsuit, Tsai said.
Collective of Sex Workers and Supporters executive director Chung Chun-chu (鍾君竺) said that if the report were true, “it would show that the sex industry is needed and that even politicians or the son of a former president need it.”
“Chen Chih-chung [if he did] should not be ashamed of hiring a prostitute, because there’s nothing wrong with that,” Chung said. “Rather, his father ... should be ashamed for outlawing prostitution when he was Taipei mayor.”
“If Chen Chih-chung really did it, he should admit it, and we welcome him to join our campaign to decriminalize the sex industry,” she said.
Next Magazine said if Chen Chih-chung decides to file suit, “we’ll meet in court then.”
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY VINCENT Y. CHAO AND LOA IOK-SIN
Beijing could eventually see a full amphibious invasion of Taiwan as the only "prudent" way to bring about unification, the US Department of Defense said in a newly released annual report to Congress. The Pentagon's "Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China 2025," was in many ways similar to last year’s report but reorganized the analysis of the options China has to take over Taiwan. Generally, according to the report, Chinese leaders view the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) capabilities for a Taiwan campaign as improving, but they remain uncertain about its readiness to successfully seize
HORROR STORIES: One victim recounted not realizing they had been stabbed and seeing people bleeding, while another recalled breaking down in tears after fleeing A man on Friday died after he tried to fight the knife-wielding suspect who went on a stabbing spree near two of Taipei’s busiest metro stations, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. The 57-year-old man, identified by his family name, Yu (余), encountered the suspect at Exit M7 of Taipei Main Station and immediately tried to stop him, but was fatally wounded and later died, Chiang said, calling the incident “heartbreaking.” Yu’s family would receive at least NT$5 million (US$158,584) in compensation through the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp’s (TRTC) insurance coverage, he said after convening an emergency security response meeting yesterday morning. National
Taiwan has overtaken South Korea this year in per capita income for the first time in 23 years, IMF data showed. Per capita income is a nation’s GDP divided by the total population, used to compare average wealth levels across countries. Taiwan also beat Japan this year on per capita income, after surpassing it for the first time last year, US magazine Newsweek reported yesterday. Across Asia, Taiwan ranked fourth for per capita income at US$37,827 this year due to sustained economic growth, the report said. In the top three spots were Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong, it said. South
Taiwan is getting a day off on Christmas for the first time in 25 years. The change comes after opposition parties passed a law earlier this year to add or restore five public holidays, including Constitution Day, which falls on today, Dec. 25. The day marks the 1947 adoption of the constitution of the Republic of China, as the government in Taipei is formally known. Back then the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) governed China from Nanjing. When the KMT, now an opposition party in Taiwan, passed the legislation on holidays, it said that they would help “commemorate the history of national development.” That
RSS