The Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) Yilan chapter was searched today and at least three people were brought in for questioning over recall fraud allegations, local media reported.
The prosecutors are investigating fraudulent petition signatures in a recall campaign against Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Chun-yu (陳俊宇), people familiar with the matter said.
More than 40 signatures were from deceased people and more than 10 signatures were forged, sources said.
Photo courtesy of a reader
The case is to be transferred to the Yilan District Prosecutors’ Office today for further investigation into suspected document forgery and contraventions of the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法).
Prosecutors this morning searched the KMT’s Yilan chapter office and the residence of the recall campaign leader, Lee Hui-ling (李惠玲), who was then brought in for questioning.
Prosecutors took away a box of documents and brought in two other staffers, surnamed Lee (李) and Wang (汪), for questioning at about 12:30pm today.
Others involved in the recall campaign were also summoned for questioning and their residences were also searched.
KMT Yilan chapter director Lin Ming-chang (林明昌) was not summoned for questioning.
KMT Yilan County Councilor Joy Huang (黃琤婷) slammed the actions as not being an investigation, but suppression, and not democratic, but political persecution.
Judicial interference and political intimidation are worrying, she said.
People are entitled to recall politicians by the Constitution, which is the foundation of democracy, she said.
Chen said in a news release that he respects the public’s right to recall politicians and is willing to communicate with Yilan residents.
However, forging and using signatures from deceased people are not the exercising of civil rights, but trampling on the democratic system, he said.
Manipulating public opinion and creating confrontation with illegal means are not acceptable, he said.
The judiciary would carry out justice, he added.
Eight Chinese naval vessels and 24 military aircraft were detected crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait between 6am yesterday and 6am today, the Ministry of National Defense said this morning. The aircraft entered Taiwan’s northern, central, southwestern and eastern air defense identification zones, the ministry said. The armed forces responded with mission aircraft, naval vessels and shore-based missile systems to closely monitor the situation, it added. Eight naval vessels, one official ship and 36 aircraft sorties were spotted in total, the ministry said.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) today said that if South Korea does not reply appropriately to its request to correct Taiwan’s name on its e-Arrival card system before March 31, it would take corresponding measures to alter how South Korea is labeled on the online Taiwan Arrival Card system. South Korea’s e-Arrival card system lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan)” in the “point of departure” and “next destination” fields. The ministry said that it changed the nationality for South Koreans on Taiwan’s Alien Resident Certificates from “Korea” to “South Korea” on March 1, in a gesture of goodwill and based on the
RSS