Prosecutor Eric Chen (陳瑞仁) made his mark on history when he announced on Friday the indictment of first lady Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍) on corruption charges -- the first time ever in Taiwan's history that an immediate member of the first family has ever been charged.
Who is Eric Chen?
Although he has been in the public spotlight for months since he undertook the investigation of the alleged misuse of the "state affairs fund," very few people know the man behind the case.
In May 1998, a group of prosecutors nationwide announced the establishment of the Prosecutors' Reform Association, and the main figure of the association is Eric Chen, who was then Shihlin District prosecutor.
The association was founded at a time when the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government was widely believed to be manipulating prosecutors to keep them from indicting of investigating government officials or big business tycoons.
"The establishment of the association was actually driven by the prosecutors' discontent with then-minister of justice Liao Cheng-hao (
The association was established to empower prosecutors and give them more room to strive for independence, Lin said.
However, developing such a group was not easy because most prosecutors have strong opinions, making it hard to arrive at a consensus on issues.
Eric Chen was one of the key figures who contributed to the successful establishment of the group, Lin said.
Not long after the association was set up, Chen was offered the position of lead prosecutor, which he declined, saying he preferred to stay with young prosecutors and that he did not want people to see his promotion as a reward by the Ministry of Justice.
"We are so proud of Eric Chen's performance. He has helped promote independence in the nation's prosecutorial system, which is very helpful to our democracy," Lin Ching-tsung (林慶宗), a prosecutor with the Kaohsiung branch of the Taiwan High Court Prosecutors' Office, told the Taipei Times.
"His only consideration is the evidence, not political color. He is a model for other prosecutors," Lin added.
In July 2000, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration set up the Black Gold Investigation Center under the Taiwan High Court Prosecutors' Office to serve as a special prosecutorial office.
In Sept. 2001, Chen became a member of the center.
Chen also enjoys respect from most reporters covering the justice beat in Taipei.
In February last year, three opposition lawmakers under investigation by the center for alleged bribery threatened to cut the center's proposed NT$7 million (US$212,765) budget in retaliation. The tactic failed, however, after Chen and other prosecutors told the press and the story made headlines.
Soon after, other lawmakers and two non-governmental organizations threw their support behind the center, and the legislature swiftly approved the center's budget for this year.
In September 2004, when Prosecutor Wu Ying-chao (吳英昭) was nominated to State Public Prosecutor-General, Chen said his association opposed Wu's appointment because of his past involvement in scandals such as the illegal trading of Taiwan Pineapple Corp shares.
The association questioned Wu's ability to lead prosecutors in a probe of corruption among high-level officials.
"It would be a step backward for the system if we were to have a prosecutor-general like Wu," Chen said in voicing his opposition to the nomination.
After Wu took office and paid a visit to the Black Gold Investigation Center, Chen declined to meet with Wu.
While other Taipei District prosecutors had come under fire for their performance in their investigation of the Sogo voucher scandal involving the first lady, an insider trading case involving the president's son-in-law Chao Chien-ming (
True to form, Chen has passed his latest test with flying colors.
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm early yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, less than a week after a typhoon barreled across the nation. The agency issued an advisory at 3:30am stating that the 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, of the Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, with a 100km radius. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA
Residents have called on the Taipei City Government to reconsider its plan to demolish a four-decades-old pedestrian overpass near Daan Forest Park. The 42-year-old concrete and steel structure that serves as an elevated walkway over the intersection of Heping and Xinsheng roads is to be closed on Tuesday in preparation for demolition slated for completion by the end of the month. However, in recent days some local residents have been protesting the planned destruction of the intersection overpass that is rendered more poetically as “sky bridge” in Chinese. “This bridge carries the community’s collective memory,” said a man surnamed Chuang
A tropical depression east of the Philippines became a tropical storm earlier today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The 22nd tropical storm, named Yinxing, in this year's Pacific typhoon season formed at 2am, the CWA said. As of 8am, the storm was 1,730km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻) with a 100km radius, it said. It was moving west-northwest at 32kph, with maximum sustained winds of 83kph and gusts of up to 108kph. Based on its current path, the storm is not expected to hit Taiwan, CWA meteorologist Huang En-hung (黃恩宏) said. However, a more accurate forecast would be made on Wednesday, when Yinxing is
NEW DESTINATIONS: Marketing campaigns to attract foreign travelers have to change from the usual promotions about Alishan and Taroko Gorge, the transport minister said The number of international tourists visiting Taiwan is estimated to top 8 million by the end of this year, Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shi-kai (陳世凱) said yesterday, adding that the ministry has not changed its goal of attracting 10 million foreign travelers this year. Chen made the remarks at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee to brief lawmakers about the ministry’s plan to boost foreign visitor arrivals. Last month, Chen told the committee that the nation might attract only 7.5 million tourists from overseas this year and that when the ministry sets next year’s goal, it would not include