The Taipei District Prosecutors' Office yesterday announced it would not prosecute PFP Chairman James Soong (
The high-profile Chung Hsing Bills Finance case (
It was alleged that Soong had embezzled two separate sums. The prosecution said that one sum, totalling around NT$360 million, was the KMT's property. The other was a surplus of donations and KMT subsidies for Soong in his 1994 Taiwan provincial governor campaign, which amounted to some NT$582.3 million.
The prosecution said its investigation confirmed Soong's claim that NT$360 million of the KMT funds deposited in accounts opened by Soong were for the party's use, namely taking care of late president and KMT chairman Chiang Ching-kuo's (蔣經國) family and carrying out the party's political tasks.
"Therefore, despite the fact that the KMT money was deposited in accounts other than those of the KMT under Soong's instruction ? it cannot be said that Soong had intent to embezzle the money ? nor had Soong's use of the money harmed the KMT's interests," officiating prosecutor Hung Tai-wen (
The PFP welcomed the ruling. A spokesman said yesterday on behalf of Soong, who is currently abroad, that Soong was "grateful to the prosecution for its investigation efforts and to his supporters for their persistent support."
"This has proven that Soong did not steal a cent," the spokesman Chang Hsien-yao (張顯耀) said.
Soong's wife, Chen Wan-shui (
Regarding the embezzlement allegations, the prosecution said that according to its interviews of several KMT politicians and Chiang family members, Soong did use the KMT money to fund the party's candidates in the 1992 legislative election and 1994 provincial councilor election, as well as to subsidize Chiang's family.
In the forgery allegation, the KMT claimed that Soong forged seals of the party and opened bank accounts in the party's name without permission. However, the prosecution said Soong's behavior did not constitute forgery.
"The elements of the offence of forging private documents include that a person who has no rights to produce the documents ... and that the contents of the documents are false," according to the decision.
The prosecution said that, as secretary-general of the KMT, Soong had the right to produce the documents and so it could not be construed as forgery.
The prosecution said that because Soong was acting in the belief that he was carrying out tasks asked of him by the party chairman, "it is obvious that he had no criminal intent to forge documents."
With regard to the fraud and breach of trust accusations, in which Soong's opponents claimed he misappropriated a surplus of the funds he raised from the public for his provincial gubernatorial campaign, the prosecution also said Soong's behavior did not constitute an offence.
"Soong raised that money in the name of his campaign and he ran and won the election, so it is not fraud," prosecutors said.
"Donations are a gift. The purpose of the campaign donation was for the candidate's election, not for any commission after the election. Therefore it is not about breach of trust," prosecutors said.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS