Taiwan Tati Cultural and Educational Foundation

Prosecutors cannot deny their moral obligations

Wu Ching-chin 吳景欽

On July 2, following four years of legal wrangling, two cases in which former vice president Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) and others were accused of embezzling special allowance funds ended with not-guilty verdicts, and prosecutors decided not to appeal. On Wednesday, Lu petitioned the Control Yuan to investigate whether the prosecutors who brought the case against her had abused their authority.

The conviction rate for corruption cases in Taiwan has for a long time hovered around 60 percent. Even setting aside the question of whether prosecutors treat cases differently according to political affiliations, the low conviction rate is hard to accept.

A-bian transferred to hospital despite family’s objections

Taipei Times

Former president Chen Shui-bian is escorted by police yesterday as he is transferred from Taoyuan General Hospital to Taipei.
Photo: CNA

Former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) was yesterday transferred to Taipei Veterans General Hospital (TVGH) from Taoyuan General Hospital for further check-ups and treatments. The transfer to the TVGH was met with objections by Chen’s family, who said the hospital was “politically affiliated” with the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).

Chen Chih-chung (陳致中), his son, said the family would prefer that the former president be taken to Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei or to a hospital in southern Taiwan.

When public figures should shut up

Taipei Times Editorial

Two prominent individuals are head-to-head this week in the contest for “bad person of the week” thanks to the tactlessness of their public remarks. Our first candidate, Wang Shaw-lan (王效蘭), publisher of the Chinese-language United Daily News, showed her true colors in comments on the sidelines of a book fair in Taipei last Friday when she called Taiwanese “detestable,” adding that she did not want to live in Taiwan anymore because its people “angered” her.

Chen’s health no laughing matter

Taipei Times Editorial

The sanctity of life is not a laughing matter, including the life of a prisoner, whose imprisonment should not be considered a deprivation of his or her basic rights. In the case of former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), his medical rights are in jeopardy. Regrettably, however, reports of Chen’s deteriorating health suggest President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and his government have not been taking the life of the nation’s former head of state seriously.

More Articles...