Judiciary officers said they are cracking down on illegal activities related to the upcoming presidential and legislative elections, with prosecutors investigating 605 cases and charges laid against 790 people in relation to suspected vote-buying, organizing election betting pools and incidents of campaign violence.
The Supreme Prosecutors’ Office said measures are under way to co-ordinate with the National Police Agency and Prosecutors’ offices to set up a “clean election” platform.
The office on Friday said that agencies are investigating vote-buying activities, use of intimidation or violence, circulation of false information on candidates, gambling pools taking bets on election outcomes, “phantom voter” registration and other illegal practices related to the election.
Seven hundred and ninety people have been charged for their alleged involvement in election-related violations or criminal activities, the office said.
Of the 605 cases under investigation, vote-buying accounted for 253 cases.
Prosecutor-General Yen Ta-ho (顏大和) said along with those investigations already under way, prosecutors and police have been conducting sweeps of known gangsters and criminal organizations and have increased security for candidates and the public.
“We have made an extra effort to crack down on illegal activities and to provide a safe living environment for people. It is to ensure the election campaign can proceed in a fair and legitimate manner,” Yen said.
“There are still many cases of candidates buying votes and the judiciary system is working hard to crack down on this practice and prosecute offenders. Vote-buying has declined from previous years,” he said.
Officials said the judiciary is also monitoring Web sites, messaging services and social media, including Facebook and messaging app Line, for smear campaigns and false news about candidates.
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