Lu urges thorough probe into 2004 assassination attempt

She made the remarks yesterday when asked to comment on a report from the Control Yuan that cast new doubts on the results from earlier investigations.

The report released on Wednesday said the first shot fired was aimed at Lu when she was riding in an open-top jeep on a street in southern Tainan City along with former President Chen Shui-bian on the eve of the March 20, 2004 presidential race.

Both were injured by gun shots fired from the crowd of supporters although neither was seriously hurt, and no one was caught during the shooting.

The shooting was seen as a major factor for the reelection-seeking Chen to overcome his deficit in all major public opinion polls to defeat Lien Chan of the Kuomintang by a thin margin that many observers believe stemmed from sympathy votes for Chen and his running mate Lu.

Chen Yi-hsiung, a resident of Tainan, was later identified as the sole suspect in the March 19, 2004 shooting by an official report from the Tainan District Prosecutors Office, which maintained that the case was closed following its probe.

But KMT supporters and Chen Yi-hsiung's family have repeated calls for new and independent investigation, which was resisted by then government agencies.

After a new probe of more than one year led by Control Yuan member Wu Feng-shan, the latest report indicated that Lu was the primary target while there were no traces of blood or bullet hole marks on Chen Shui-bian's pants and underwear, although his belly showed signs of being scraped by the bullet.

Lu said she was not surprised at the findings of the new report and they were identical with her own judgment.

The former vice president said she never thought that Chen Yi-hsiung, who was presumed to have committed suicide, was the lone suspect in the case.

But she also said that she personally does not believe that the incident was deliberately staged by Chen Shui-bian in order to swing the votes as alleged by many people.

Lu stressed that the crucial job for now is to get to the bottom of the incident and let the people know the whole truth.

She said the Supreme Court Prosecutors Office should more actively carry out its investigation into the “319 case” and tell the truth to the people as early as possible.

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