Citing insufficient proof, the Tapei District Court yesterday acquitted former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and his wife, Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍), of charges that they laundered money and took bribes from bankers in exchange for help manipulating bank mergers.
Nineteen co-defendants were also cleared of charges of money laundering, breach of trust and insider trading because of a lack of proof, Judge Chou Chan-chun (周占春) said yesterday afternoon.
Special Investigation Panel (SIP) prosecutors in December last year charged the defendants, alleging that the bankers bribed the former president into pressuring the Ministry of Finance (MOF) to approve mergers during the second phase of financial reforms by the Chen administration aimed at encouraging consolidation of the banking sector.
Chou said in the ruling that according to Anti-Corruption Act (貪汙治罪條例), a public official violates the law by taking bribes in exchange for decisions or policies in favor of the bribers, but according to the Constitution, the president’s duties do not include policies on bank mergers, so Chen was unable to receive money from banks to help their merger proposals.
Prosecutors had alleged that Chen and his wife took NT$600 million (US$19 million) from Cathay Financial Holding Co (國泰金控) and NT$200 million from Yuanta Securities Co (元大證券) as a “payment” to ensure the financial groups’ acquisitions of smaller financial institutions went smoothly.
During the trial that began in February, Chen repeatedly insisted on his innocence, saying that the money was taken by his wife without his knowledge or the knowledge of his children.
Wu said the funds she collected were not bribes, but campaign donations.
The ruling said that although Chen received the money, he was unable to use his presidential authority to decide merger plans and as such, the money should be seen as a political donation.
Chou’s ruling added that since the money the Chen family received was not a bribe, bank officials who later helped the family transfer the funds overseas therefore did not violate money laundering rules, because money laundering only takes place when transferring money resulting from crime or corruption.
As such, Chen’s daughter, Chen Hsing-yu (陳幸妤), his son, Chen Chih-chung (陳致中), and his daughter-in-law, Huang Jui-ching (黃睿靚), were also found not guilty of laundering money, as were Wu’s elder brother, Wu Ching-mao (吳景茂), and his wife, Chen Chun-ying (陳俊英).
The accused business executives, including Yuanta Financial Holding Co (元大金控) founder Rudy Ma (馬志玲), former Yuanta Securities Co board member Tu Li-ping (杜麗萍) and chairwoman Judy Tu (杜麗莊), former China Development Financial Holding Corp (中華開發金控) president Angelo Koo (辜仲瑩) and Cathay Financial Holdings Co vice chairman Tsai Chen-yu (蔡鎮宇) were also found not guilty.
Ma Yung-cheng (馬永成), a former top aide to Chen Shui-bian, was found not guilty of charges that he conspired with the former first couple to take bribes, while former presidential adviser Wu Li-pei (吳澧培) was also cleared in the court’s ruling.
Chen Shui-bian, currently appealing a 20-year jail sentence for multiple counts of corruption in a separate trial, has previously said that the legal action against him is a vendetta carried out by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government in retaliation for his pro-independence stance during his 2000 to 2008 presidential term.
Lawyer Cheng Wen-long (鄭文龍) told reporters that the former president found the ruling comforting.
SIP Spokesman Chen Hung-ta (陳宏達) said the “verdict is against the public’s concept of the law” and that prosecutors would appeal to the Taiwan High Court.
IMMIGRATION REFORM: The legislative amendments aim to protect the rights of families to reunify, and to attract skilled professionals to stay and work in Taiwan Foreigners who are highly skilled professionals, top-prize winners in professional disciplines, investment immigration applicants or have made special contributions to Taiwan can soon apply for permanent residency on behalf of their spouses and minor or disabled children after the legislature approved amendments to the Immigration Act (入出國及移民法). The amendments, which were proposed by the Ministry of the Interior and approved by the Executive Yuan on Jan. 12, aim to attract foreign talent to Taiwan and encourage them to stay. They would take effect once they are signed by President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文). The amendments involved changing 63 articles, making it the biggest
FIRST STEP: Business groups in Taiwan welcomed the deal, which does not include tariff reductions at this stage, as they called for the elimination of double taxation Taiwan and the US yesterday signed an initial agreement under the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade. The agreement was signed yesterday morning by Representative to the US Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) and American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Managing Director Ingrid Larson in Washington, the Office of Trade Negotiations in Taipei said. The ceremony was witnessed by Minister Without Portfolio John Deng (鄧振中) and Deputy US Trade Representative Sarah Bianchi. Taiwan and the US started talks under the initiative in August last year, after Taipei was left out of the Washington-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework. “The deal that will be signed tonight is not only very historic,
Beijing yesterday blamed US “provocation” for an incident last week in which a Chinese plane crossed in front of a US surveillance aircraft over the South China Sea. The incident came at a time of frayed ties between Washington and Beijing over issues including Taiwan and the shooting down of an alleged Chinese spy balloon that flew over the US this year. “The United States’ long-term and frequent sending of ships and planes to conduct close surveillance on China seriously harms China’s national sovereignty and security,” Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning (毛寧) said when asked about the latest incident. “This
‘GLOBAL NETWORK’: The only way to deter a Chinese invasion is for the international community to unite in its resolve, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Roy Lee said Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Roy Lee (李淳) yesterday urged democratic nations around the world to not let Beijing dictate the definition of their “one China” policies, saying that they should increase cooperation with Taiwan to build a resilient democratic network. Lee made the remarks during his speech, titled “Ukraine and Taiwan: Why Global Unity Matters,” at the annual Bratislava Forum in Slovakia. “People in Taiwan have been paying close attention to the situation in Ukraine and admire Ukrainians for defending their homeland. They are [also] fighting for Taiwan and democratic countries around the world,” Lee told forum participants. “The international
RSS