President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday said he had never interfered in judicial processes and hoped that prosecutors would see all cases through to a conclusion regardless of the political affiliation of the suspects.
Speaking at a meeting of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) Central Evaluation Committee, Ma said it was important to build clean government and that he would implement his campaign promise to this effect now that the KMT was in power.
Ma said that he was aware of concern over the probe into former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), but that as head of state he could not meddle in the judiciary.
“Several weeks ago, some people were upset with me and the government because they thought we did not do enough,” he said. “A few weeks later, other people are unhappy because certain actions were taken.”
Ma said this showed his government had not interfered.
“We hope all investigators and prosecutors can get to the bottom of all cases, no matter if [suspects] are from the blue camp or the green camp,” Ma said.
Equally important was protecting the rights of suspects and upholding due process, he said.
Chen is suspected of money laundering, accepting bribes, forgery and embezzling NT$15 million (US$450,000) during his presidency. He has been detained without charge since Nov. 12 and refused to eat for two weeks to protest what he called political persecution.
Chen has accused the KMT administration of waging a “political vendetta” against him to curry favor with China.
Ma also defended his China policy, arguing that Washington did not think he had gone too far and that it had said the Ma government’s actions “corresponded to US interests.”
Ma said the Asia-Pacific region and the world should feel happy that tensions in the Taiwan Strait had eased.
“The direction we are taking is correct,” he said.
Taiwan yesterday condemned the recent increase in Chinese coast guard-escorted fishing vessels operating illegally in waters around the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. Unusually large groupings of Chinese fishing vessels began to appear around the islands on Feb. 15, when at least six motherships and 29 smaller boats were sighted, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said in a news release. While CGA vessels were dispatched to expel the Chinese boats, Chinese coast guard ships trespassed into Taiwan’s restricted waters and unsuccessfully attempted to interfere, the CGA said. Due to the provocation, the CGA initiated an operation to increase
CHANGING LANDSCAPE: Many of the part-time programs for educators were no longer needed, as many teachers obtain a graduate degree before joining the workforce, experts said Taiwanese universities this year canceled 86 programs, Ministry of Education data showed, with educators attributing the closures to the nation’s low birthrate as well as shifting trends. Fifty-three of the shuttered programs were part-time postgraduate degree programs, about 62 percent of the total, the most in the past five years, the data showed. National Taiwan Normal University (NTNU) discontinued the most part-time master’s programs, at 16: chemistry, life science, earth science, physics, fine arts, music, special education, health promotion and health education, educational psychology and counseling, education, design, Chinese as a second language, library and information sciences, mechatronics engineering, history, physical education
The Chinese military has boosted its capability to fight at a high tempo using the element of surprise and new technology, the Ministry of National Defense said in the Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) published on Monday last week. The ministry highlighted Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) developments showing significant changes in Beijing’s strategy for war on Taiwan. The PLA has made significant headway in building capabilities for all-weather, multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, operational control and a joint air-sea blockade against Taiwan’s lines of communication, it said. The PLA has also improved its capabilities in direct amphibious assault operations aimed at seizing strategically important beaches,
‘MALIGN PURPOSE’: Governments around the world conduct espionage operations, but China’s is different, as its ultimate goal is annexation, a think tank head said Taiwan is facing a growing existential threat from its own people spying for China, experts said, as the government seeks to toughen measures to stop Beijing’s infiltration efforts and deter Taiwanese turncoats. While Beijing and Taipei have been spying on each other for years, experts said that espionage posed a bigger threat to Taiwan due to the risk of a Chinese attack. Taiwan’s intelligence agency said China used “diverse channels and tactics” to infiltrate the nation’s military, government agencies and pro-China organizations. The main targets were retired and active members of the military, persuaded by money, blackmail or pro-China ideology to steal
RSS