The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday lamented what it called “the death” of the nation’s constitutional system, which it ascribed to the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office’s decision to indict former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).
Speaking at a news conference in Taipei, KMT caucus convener Sufin Siluko (廖國棟) said that as the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法) entitles the president to declassify information, Ma’s handling of confidential information regarding a wiretapping case should not have been deemed illegal.
Sufin was referring to Article 7 of the act, which stipulates that the president, premier and ministers authorized by them are allowed to classify information top secret, as well as Article 28, which stipulates that classified information may be declassified by the official who authorized the original classification, or their superior official.
Photo: Liao chen-huei, Taipei Times
Ma on Tuesday was indicted on charges of leaking classified information and abuse of authority.
He is accused of divulging details to two government officials of wiretapped telephone conversations between then-legislative speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) during a then-ongoing investigation into alleged improper lobbying in 2013.
It is preposterous that the people who sought to damage judicial justice by engaging in improper political lobbying got off scot-free, while the person who tried to deal with wrongdoings is facing indictment, KMT Legislator Alicia Wang (王育敏) said.
“I solemnly urge the judicial system to refrain from playing politics,” she said.
The DPP has been interfering with the judicial system since former Presidential Office secretary-general Chen Shih-meng (陳師孟) on March 5 accused the judiciary of targeting only the pan-green camp, KMT Legislator Lai Shyh-bao (賴士葆) said
Chen also vowed to redress the what he described as the procedural injustice experienced by former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who was found guilty of corruption and related charges and served more than six years of his 20-year prison term before his release on medical parole in January 2015.
“Shortly after that, the Supreme Administrative Court on Friday last week ruled against the KMT in a fund-freezing case. The verdict was followed by Ma’s indictment on Tuesday,” Lai said, adding that Chen Shih-meng’s remarks have apparently had a chilling effect.
In related news, the Taipei District Court yesterday made public the computer-generated random number draw that decided which judge would review Ma’s case.
The judge picked, Tang Yueh (唐玥) oversaw a case involving the beating death of a police detective a Taipei nightclub in 2014.
Additional Reporting by Chang Wen-chuan
A fugitive in a suspected cosmetic surgery fraud case today returned to Taiwan from Canada, after being wanted for six years. Internet celebrity Su Chen-tuan (蘇陳端), known as Lady Nai Nai (貴婦奈奈), and her former boyfriend, plastic surgeon Paul Huang (黃博健), allegedly defrauded clients and friends of about NT$1 billion (US$30.66 million). Su was put on a wanted list in 2019 when she lived in Toronto, Canada, after failing to respond to subpoenas and arrest warrants from the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. Su arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 5am today on an EVA Air flight accompanied by a
COVID-19 infections have climbed for three consecutive weeks and are likely to reach another peak between next month and June, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday. Weekly hospital visits for the disease increased by 19 percent from the previous week, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said. From Tuesday last week to yesterday, 21 cases of severe COVID-19 and seven deaths were confirmed, and from Sept. 1 last year to yesterday, there were 600 cases and 129 deaths, he said. From Oct. 1 last year to yesterday, 95.9 percent of the severe cases and 96.7 percent of the deaths
Restarting the No. 2 reactor at the Ma-anshan Nuclear Power Plant would take up to 18 months, Minister of Economic Affairs J.W. Kuo (郭智輝) said today. Kuo was answering questions during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Economics Committee, where legislators are considering amendments to the Renewable Energy Development Act (再生能源發展條) amid concerns about the consequences of the Pingtung County reactor’s decommissioning scheduled for May 17. Its decommissioning is to mark the end of Taiwan’s nuclear power production. However, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers have proposed an amendment to the Nuclear Reactor Facilities Regulation Act (核子反應器設施管制法) that would extend the life of existing
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday demanded that Somalia reverse its decision prohibiting Taiwanese passport holders from entering or transiting through the country. Somalia said it is following the “one China” principle based on UN Resolution 2758. The ministry said that Somalia is misinterpreting the resolution under China’s instigation, creating a false impression that Taiwan is subordinate to China. The Somali Civil Aviation Authority told airlines on Tuesday last week that starting today, any passengers with passports or travel documents issued from Taiwan or its affiliated institutions would not be allowed to enter or transit through Somalia. The decision comes as Taiwan is boosting
RSS