TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – As calls for a pardon grew louder Saturday, reports said former President Chen Shui-bian could soon find himself in court again in connection
Chen was sentenced to 20 years in prison for corruption but left jail on medical parole in January 2015 after serving six years. He now lives with his family in Kaohsiung.
A campaign to have him pardoned gained steam Friday, when first Democratic Progressive Party members of the Kaohsiung City Council approved a motion in that sense, which then received the support of Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu. During the afternoon, she took Vice President-elect Chen Chien-jen on a visit to the former head of state.
The Taiwan High Court will hold a session on May 13 to hear the allegations against Chen and his wife, Wu Shu-jen, that they misused special government funds, the former president’s attorney said. The hearing will come exactly one week before DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen is sworn in as Taiwan’s first DPP president since Chen.
A DPP legislator posted a picture of the letter from the court on his Facebook page, while the attorney said he had received a copy of the letter late on Friday, even though the cases Chen had been involved in had not been dealt with by the courts for one of two years.
The former president had first been sentenced to life, but on appeal he had been found not guilty, so it was strange that the case suddenly emerged again so short before the May 20 inauguration of a new DPP government, Chen supporters said.
When politicians called on President Ma Ying-jeou Friday to pardon his predecessor, the Presidential Office responded that a pardon was only given after the judicial procedures surrounding the beneficiary were completed.
Court soon to deal with Chen Shui-bian case
