Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers and former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who is currently in detention on charges of corruption and money laundering, have reacted angrily to a skit recently performed by members of the judiciary, which they believe was intended to mock Chen.
At an event held to celebrate Law Day (司法節) at the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office (TDPO) on Sunday, several members of the judiciary put on a comic skit for the amusement of an audience of judges, prosecutors and attorneys.
The skit portrayed a court hearing in which someone accused of a narcotics offense tried to delay the case by claiming to be HIV positive and saying that she wanted to die together with the judge. When the judge ordered the defendant to be held in detention and was put in handcuffs, the defendant held up her cuffed hands in the air, crying, “Judicial persecution! The court police are beating me! I demand to have my injuries examined!”
The audience of legal professionals reportedly found the skit very funny because the “defendant’s” acts of displaying her handcuffs and shouting slogans closely resembled gestures made by Chen when he was taken into detention in November.
The skit was written by TDPO chief prosecutor Ching Chi-jen (慶啟人), who traveled to Switzerland and Singapore last year to investigate the money-laundering allegations against former president Chen, while the accused was played by another Taipei prosecutor, Chang An-chen (張安箴).
On hearing reports of the skit, DPP legislators said it was meant to mock Chen and that such a frivolous performance brought the judiciary into disrepute.
Speaking through his lawyer, Cheng Wen-long (鄭文龍), Chen accused the prosecutors of “gloating” about his case and called their behavior “unimaginable.”
A free exhibition aimed at teaching the public about air-raid shelters and basic emergency personal protection skills today opened on the concourse level of the Taipei MRT's Ximen Station. The event, organized by the National Police Agency, aims to raise awareness about disaster preparedness ahead of nationwide air raid drills scheduled from July 15 to 18, which are part of broader urban resilience exercises. The exhibition outlines the recommended actions people should take depending on whether they are indoors, commuting or outdoors when air-raid sirens sound. It also teaches people how to equip air-raid shelters and pack emergency "go bags," with displays
A first shipment of five tons of Taiwan tilapia was sent from Tainan to Singapore on Wednesday, following an order valued at NT$600,000 (US$20,500) placed with a company in the city. The products, including frozen whole fish and pre- cooked fish belly, were dispatched from Jiangjun Fishing Harbor, where a new aquatic processing and logistics center is under construction. At the launch, Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che (黃偉哲) called the move a “breakthrough,” marking Taiwan’s expansion into the Singaporean tilapia market. Taiwan’s tilapia exports have traditionally focused on the United States, Canada, and the Middle East, Huang said, adding that the new foothold in
An electric bus charging facility at Taipei Metro’s Beitou Depot officially opened yesterday with 22 charging bays to serve the city’s 886 electric buses. Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) told a ceremony to mark the opening of the facility that the city aims to fully electrify its bus fleet by 2030. The number of electric buses has grown from about 650 last year to 886 this year and is expected to surpass 1,000 by the end of the year, Chiang said. Setting up the charging station in a metro depot optimizes land and energy use, as the metro uses power mainly during the
An exhibition demonstrating the rejuvenation of the indigenous Kuskus Village in Pingtung County’s Mudan Township (牡丹) opened at the Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency’s conservation station in Taipei on Thursday. Agency Director-General Lin Hwa-ching (林華慶) said they have been promoting the use and development of forestry resources to local indigenous residents for eight years to drive regional revitalization. While modern conservation approaches mostly stem from western scientific research, eco-friendly knowledge and skills passed down through generations of indigenous people, who have lived in Taiwan for centuries, could be more suitable for the environment, he said. The agency’s Pingtung branch Director-General Yang Jui-fen (楊瑞芬)
RSS