A group representing the nation’s judges condemned Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟), who was yesterday confirmed by the legislature as a Control Yuan member, saying that he had threatened the judiciary during the nomination process and that he would undermine judicial independence through political interference.
“Chen did not hide his personal stance of using the power of the Control Yuan to pervert judicial independence... It will be a disaster for the nation’s justice system,” the Judges Association of Republic of China said in a statement.
“Because Chen disagreed with past court decisions, he implied he would use his authority to investigate and purge the judges who did not make rulings conforming to his political ideology,” the statement said. “He was clearly making threats against the judiciary. Our association wishes to express our anguish and disappointment.”
Chen “must not employ his political ideology in exercising his authority to censure and impeach government officials found to have violated the law. He must not use this power to attack, persecute, or take revenge on political opponents, or to fulfill his personal political ambitions,” it said.
Chen Shih-meng served as Presidential Office secretary-general under former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), and was Taipei deputy mayor when Chen Shui-bian was Taipei mayor from 1994 to 1998.
During a question-and-answer session at the legislation for his nomination on Monday, Chen Shih-meng said: “There were flaws in the judicial procedure in the four cases against Chen Shui-bian, in which he was found guilty. If those were based on the normative legal process, he should have been acquitted... Chen Shui-bian should not be convicted of corruption. This is not my personal opinion, but the viewpoints and interpretations of many friends in the legal field... I believe that in those cases Chen Shui-bian came under unjustified persecution by the judiciary.”
Chen Shih-meng added that there were flaws in other judicial cases against ministers and officials of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
“These were due to manipulation and perversion of the justice system left over from the old days of one-party authoritarian rule. The only way to fight against these abuses in the justice system is to exercise the power of the Control Yuan,” he said.
If appointed to the Control Yuan, he will fight “dinosaur judges” and “will launch probes against those in the judiciary who selectively take up prosecution against pan-green camp politicians and government officials,” Chen Shih-meng said on Monday.
When asked about the statement, Chen Shih-meng yesterday said: “Are they so easily threatened and scared? “ adding that he had not read the statement, so “I cannot give a proper reply at this time.”
The Control Yuan is one of five government branches, and is empowered to investigate corruption or wrongdoing by public employees and officials and government agencies, and to mete out punishment.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
RSS