The Taiwan High Court yesterday said it was trying to dissuade a judge from resigning after criticism of a recent ruling that saw the sentence of former Presidential Office deputy secretary-general Chen Che-nan (陳哲男) reduced from nine years in prison to seven months.
In a statement yesterday, which High Court judge Chen Heng-kuan (陳恆寬) released through the High Court, Judge Chen — one of three court members in Chen Che-nan’s case — said that as a court official, he should be responsible for the controversial verdict. He added he had tendered his resignation.
Chen Heng-kuan said in the statement that the most important foundation of the judiciary was the public’s trust.
He added that the latest ruling in Chen Che-nan’s case, in addition to the recent furor in which it is alleged that three Taiwan High Court judges took bribes in return for acquitting a former lawmaker of corruption charges, had all further impairing the public’s confidence in the nation’s judiciary.
On Tuesday, the High Court cited evidence that Chen Che-nan accepted NT$6 million (US$197,200) from businessman Liang Po-hsun (梁柏薰) in 2002 and promised in return to use his influence to settle two court cases involving Liang.
In both Chen Che-nan’s first and second trials, handled by the Taipei District Court and the Taiwan High Court, he was found guilty and given hefty sentences.
However, after Chen Che-nan won an appeal which led to the third trial on Tuesday, the ruling said because his post at the Presidential Office did not involve conducting judicial investigations, the money he took was unrelated to his work and hence he had committed fraud, not corruption.
Local media reported that in the Chen Che-nan case, presiding judge Tseng ter-shui (曾德水) was of the opinion that Chen-Che-nan committed fraud — a less serious crime compared with a corruption charge — and wanted to give him a lighter sentence, while Chen Heng-kuan and judge Tsui Ling-chi (崔玲琦) harbored a different opinion, with Chen Heng-kuan insisting that he believed Chen Che-nan was guilty of corruption and hence should be given a heavy sentence.
The High Court yesterday said Tsui had applied to leave Tseng’s court as a sign of protest at the ruling.
Meanwhile, Chen Heng-kuan, alleging that High Court judges enjoy too much power, said he hoped his resignation could lead to some reform in the High Court.
When asked for comment, Tseng yesterday said: “The ruling [of the Chen Che-nan case] was just.”
SHIPS, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES: The ministry has announced changes to varied transportation industries taking effect soon, with a number of effects for passengers Beginning next month, the post office is canceling signature upon delivery and written inquiry services for international registered small packets in accordance with the new policy of the Universal Postal Union, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday. The new policy does not apply to packets that are to be delivered to China, the ministry said. Senders of international registered small packets would receive a NT$10 rebate on postage if the packets are sent from Jan. 1 to March 31, it added. The ministry said that three other policies are also scheduled to take effect next month. International cruise ship operators
NUMBERS IMBALANCE: More than 4 million Taiwanese have visited China this year, while only about half a million Chinese have visited here Beijing has yet to respond to Taiwan’s requests for negotiation over matters related to the recovery of cross-strait tourism, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. Taiwan’s tourism authority issued the statement after Chinese-language daily the China Times reported yesterday that the government’s policy of banning group tours to China does not stop Taiwanese from visiting the country. As of October, more than 4.2 million had traveled to China this year, exceeding last year. Beijing estimated the number of Taiwanese tourists in China could reach 4.5 million this year. By contrast, only 500,000 Chinese tourists are expected in Taiwan, the report said. The report
The Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency yesterday launched a gift box to market honey “certified by a Formosan black bear” in appreciation of a beekeeper’s amicable interaction with a honey-thieving bear. Beekeeper Chih Ming-chen (池明鎮) in January inspected his bee farm in Hualien County’s Jhuosi Township (卓溪) and found that more than 20 beehives had been destroyed and many hives were eaten, with bear droppings and paw prints near the destroyed hives, the agency said. Chih returned to the farm to move the remaining beehives away that evening when he encountered a Formosan black bear only 20m away, the agency said. The bear
Chinese embassy staffers attempted to interrupt an award ceremony of an international tea competition in France when the organizer introduced Taiwan and displayed the Republic of China flag, a Taiwanese tea farmer said in an interview published today. Hsieh Chung-lin (謝忠霖), chief executive of Juxin Tea Factory from Taichung's Lishan (梨山) area, on Dec. 2 attended the Teas of the World International Contest held at the Peruvian embassy in Paris. Hsieh was awarded a special prize for his Huagang Snow Source Tea by the nonprofit Agency for the Valorization of Agricultural Products (AVPA). During the ceremony, two Chinese embassy staffers in attendance
RSS