An investigation has shown that former minister of national defense Chen Chao-min (陳肇敏) intervened in a courtmartial ruling in a sexual assault incident at the Air Force Command Headquarters, leading to the execution of air force serviceman Chiang Kuo-ching (江國慶) 18 years ago, Control Yuan members said yesterday.
Although knowing that another serviceman, Hsu Jung-chou (許榮洲), had admitted to the rape and murder of a five-year-old girl, Chen, the then-deputy commander of the air force, ordered the military court not to suspend the charges against Chiang, a report released by the Control Yuan yesterday said.
The report said Lu Te-yi (呂德義), the military judge in charge of the case, told Control Yuan member Shen Mei-chen (沈美真) in an interview that an “independent military judiciary did not exist at the time” and “there was no independent military court” because he had to follow orders from his superior.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Lu told Shen that he had to have consent of then-Air Force Command Headquarters’ legal affairs director Tsao Chia-sheng (曹嘉生) before he was able to summon witnesses or deliver official documents, and thus he had no choice but to listen to his superiors, according to the report.
Control Yuan member Ma Yi-kung (馬以工), who also took part in the probe, said that when looking at original documents provided by the Ministry of National Defense, she found eight notes written by Chen.
On one note, Chen wrote he was aware that Hsu had confessed to the rape and murder, but that it would cause too much trouble to high-ranking officers if medical examinations proved that Hsu had a mental disorder, Ma said.
In another note, Chen asked the military court to negotiate with the political warfare department to find the “lowest acceptable standards” so that charges against Chiang would not have to be withdrawn and the military could show that it was fair, Ma said.
According to the normal judicial procedures, the military court should have suspended the case against Chiang upon learning of Hsu’s confession, but the court did not do so, Shen said.
It is very clear that the military court was not operating independently and was pressured by senior officers.
Control Yuan members Yu Teng-fang (余騰芳) and Yang Mei-ling (楊美鈴) also took part in the investigation.
In response to media queries on whether Chen should be held responsible for Chiang’s wrongful execution, Ma said Chen could not have done it alone, and it was a structural issue within the military.
While the Control Yuan was unable to impeach anyone involved in the case, since the impeachment period of 10 years had expired long ago, Yang said the four members still wanted to publicize their investigation report to remind the government to be more cautious in handling legal cases.
The Military Northern District Court acquitted Chiang on Sept. 13, 2011, of the rape and murder, 14 years after he was executed at the age of 21.
A Control Yuan investigation in 2010 found that Chiang had been tortured into confessing by military investigators.
On March 19, the Supreme Court upheld the Taiwan High Court’s ruling in April last year that Hsu, who is mentally challenged, was not guilty of the rape and murder either. He had originally been convicted in December 2011 by the Taipei District Court.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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