Hsieh Wen-ding (
Hsieh said he would immediately check into Chen's family members' recent accusations that investigators "abused procedure" while conducting their investigations, even though there was no new evidence about the shooting incident.
"Procedural justice outweighs everything," Hsieh said at a committee meeting at the legislature to review his qualifications to become the nation's top prosecutor.
Hsieh made the remarks while answering questions from Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Kao Su-po (高思博). Kao asked Hsieh to promise to secure procedural justice during prosecutors' investigations.
Kao's concern comes in the wake of the retraction of testimony by the family of the man suspected of shooting the president and vice president on the eve of the 2004 presidential election.
The family now says that police had coerced them into making false statements.
Answering a question from KMT Legislator Chiu Yi (邱毅), Hsieh said he had told Chu Chao-liang (朱朝亮), head of the Tainan prosecutors' office which was handling the case, to consider appointing credible prosecutors to investigate the complaints of "abused procedure."
Hsieh is the first state public prosecutor-general whose appointment has required legislative approval, in accordance with amendments made to the Organic Law of Court Organization (法院組織法) on Jan. 13.
Another amendment to the law was the establishment of a "Special Investigation Team," an organ under the Ministry of Justice charged with investigating malfeasance by high-ranking officials.
The high-ranking officials include the president, vice president, the heads of the government's five branches, ministers or chairmen of the government departments and military officials who are ranked above general.
Some pan-blue camp legislators who support Lee Tsu-chun (李子春), a prosecutor at the Hualien District Prosecutors' Office, suggested they would approve Hsieh if he agreed to appoint Lee as a member of the "Special Investigation Team."
Lee became well-known after he summoned President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) to testify in a vote-buying case in August 2003.
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first
RSS