Taiwan's corruption case to challenge its judicial system

The three months since his arrest on charges of embezzling public funds, taking bribes and money laundering have seen almost continuous wrangling over the initial decision to grant him bail.

Prosecutors finally got their way in late December when the original judge in the case was removed. The man who replaced him ordered that the former president be remanded in custody, pending a trial that could see him jailed for life.

“The fact that he (the judge) was changed raised a lot of questions on what grounds and basis the decision was made,” said Phil Deans, a Taiwan expert at Temple University's Tokyo campus.

“Some of the problems Taiwan has is that the people don't have a lot of confidence in the system,” he said. “The political scene is so angry and bitter that ... one side or the other would not trust the outcome.”

The court has stood by its decision, saying Chen's case was handed over to a judge already presiding over the “closely related” embezzlement trial of Chen's wife, to avoid the possibility of “inconsistent rulings” in the cases.

In a letter to Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou this month, nearly 30 international scholars warned that “the erosion of the judicial system” could jeopardize Chen's right to a fair trial.

“Taiwan's judicial system must be not only above suspicion but even above the appearance of suspicion, of partiality and political bias,” the letter said.

They also expressed concerns over the “widespread pattern of leaks” to the press on the ongoing case.

Others have expressed doubts over the legitimacy of locking up Chen and other suspects even before they were indicted, accusing prosecutors of attempting to secure confessions.

“Chen's case is a serious test to Taiwan's judicial system and I am afraid that some of the latest developments won't help build its credibility,” said Lin Feng-cheng, director of Taiwan's Judicial Reform Foundation.

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