Main defendant Chiang Fang Chih-yi (蔣方智怡) on Friday responded to criticism that she had not done enough to preserve the diaries of former presidents Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and Chiang Ching-kuo (蔣經國), at a hearing at the Taipei District Court in a case brought by the Academia Historica.
Ownership of the diaries is to be decided by the outcome of the hearing, after a US court said it would await the local court’s decision on the matter.
The Academia Historica has since 2012 contended with Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and Chiang Fang for the right to own and archive the former presidents’ diaries, as well as private documents.
Chiang Fang came into custody of the diaries through her husband, Chiang Hsiao-yung (蔣孝勇), the youngest son of Chiang Ching-kuo.
After their deaths, Chiang Hsiao-yung was entrusted with his father’s and grandfather’s diaries, private papers and government documents. In 2005, Chiang Fang gave her consent for the diaries to be deposited at the Hoover Institution for a period of 50 years.
Chiang Kai-shek’s personal diaries stretch from 1915 to July 1972, while Chiang Ching-kuo’s diaries record his experiences from 1937 to 1980.
Stanford University appealed to the US District Court in San Jose, California, to arbitrate rightful ownership in 2013. The District Court in San Jose on Sept. 2, 2015, said it would put off the arbitration until the Academia Historica obtained a court ruling in its favor in Taiwan.
Thirteen claimants from the Chiang family, including Chiang Fang, were listed as defendants in the case.
The institute said the diaries belonged to the Republic of China as stipulated by the Presidential and Vice Presidential Records and Artifacts Act (總統副總統文物管理條例).
Academia Historica said that eight defendants to date had agreed to drop their ownership claims to the diaries and it would not exclude the possibility of settling the issue with the defendants.
The institute would remain strictly neutral and all documents retrieved would be made available to the public, following the example of the Chiang Kai-shek presidential files, it said.
Court hearings in Taiwan began on Nov. 11 last year. After two failed arbitrations, the case is now entering legal proceedings.
Chiang Fang told the court that she was certain the two former presidents would have agreed that the diaries should be turned over to the Academia Historica and added she hoped legal proceedings could be avoided and all parties could come to a settlement out of court.
However, she “could not accept” allegations that she had illegally seized the diaries and all papers, Chiang Fang said.
Her husband had authorized her to “transfer the diaries and all papers to a credible academic establishment for preservation” and after he passed away she thus assumed full ownership of the documents, she said.
Chiang Fang said she could understand criticism that she had not done enough to preserve the diaries and papers, but she could not accept being called a thief.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Kaohsiung Tourism Bureau audited six hotels in an effort to prevent price gouging ahead of Korean band BTS’ concert tour in the city scheduled for Nov. 19, 21 and 22 this year. The bureau on Friday said that the audits — conducted in response to allegations of unfair pricing posted on social media — found no wrongdoing. These establishments included the local branches of Chateau de Chine, Hotel Nikko, My Humble House, and Grand Hai Lai, it said, adding that the Consumer Protection Commission would have penalized price gougers had the accusations been substantiated. The bureau said the Tourism Development Act
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS