Deputy Minister of National Defense Andrew Hsia (夏立言) has reportedly been tapped to succeed Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Wang Yu-chi (王郁琦), who tendered his resignation on Tuesday after prosecutors decided not to prosecute former council deputy minister Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀) for allegedly leaking confidential information to China.
Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Major General David Lo (羅紹和) said that Hsia declined to comment on the matter and only said he would perform his duties as called for in his current position.
Hsia has served as deputy minister of foreign affairs, representative to India and Indonesia, and director of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York. His background in foreign affairs raised many eyebrows when he was named deputy minister of national defense in October 2013.
Commenting on Hsia’s reported appointment to head the council, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇) said that Straits Exchange Foundation Vice Chairman Kao Koong-lian (高孔廉) — who was earlier reported to be the likely successor — would be a better pick with his experience in cross-strait affairs.
Asked to comment on whether Hsia or possibly MAC Vice Minister Lin Chu-chia (林祖嘉) might be appointed to the post, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said the question is whether either of them would bring any breakthrough in cross-strait relations.
“Whether it is Hsia or Lin who will be appointed to take over the position, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is still looking in the mirror in his search for a new minister,” Tsai said. “Neither of the two possesses any characteristics that could impress the public or potentially bring about something new. I doubt whether they can create any breakthrough in cross-strait relations, or make up for the damage that Chang’s case created.”
Hsia was embroiled in a controversy months ago when he invited his Chinese relatives — including a cousin who is said to be a local Chinese Communist Party official and the cousin’s wife who is said to be a retired Chinese military officer — to dinner.
He later said that the couple came to Taiwan with a group of distant relatives on holiday and were invited by his brother to a family dinner, which he also attended. He also denied that the two were military-related officials.
In related news, the Central News Agency reported that “a person affiliated with national security” yesterday said that outgoing National Security Council (NSC) Secretary-General King Pu-tsung (金溥聰) is to take legal actions against those, including political pundits, who “fabricated rumors and falsely accused” him of ordering others “to take Chang down.”
The person said that King asked national security agencies about Chang, in his capacity as NSC head, after being informed by Wang of his concerns about Chang.
Clara Chou (周玉蔻), a radio host and political pundit, wrote in an online post that it was Wang himself who said that King had informed him that “[King was] afraid that there was really something wrong with Chang.”
According to Chou, labor rights activist Cheng Tsun-chi (鄭村棋), a former director of Taipei City’s Department of Labor under then-mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), said in a talk show that Chang’s case was a “political frame-up,” which another media pundit, Huang Kuang-chin (黃光芹), described as the “modern version of the White Terror era.”
“What was the foundation for King to say [that there was something wrong with Chang] and why did not the [Taipei] district prosecutors’ office summon King for the investigation?” she asked. “It is getting clearer now that King was involved in directing Wang to frame a high-ranking official in a way that resembles White Terror-era tactics.”
Additional reporting by Loa Iok-sin
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