Convicted lawmaker banned from poll
Taiwanese election authorities have banned convicted opposition 'whistle-blower' Chiu Yi from running in the legislative elections due at the end of this year.
But the outspoken Kuomintang legislator, who has been sentenced to 14 months in jail for illegal assembly during the 2004 presidential election, says the decision will not stop him from exposing scandals involving President Chen Shui-bian's government.
'After I go to jail, my voter service office will continue operating and I will offer a 24-hour service [to voters] from the prison [through my office],' Chiu said yesterday. 'I will continue to reveal scandals even after I am locked behind bars.'
Chiu, who is still a legislator, is required to start his sentence before April 3. His sentence will not affect his status as a legislator.
His statements came after the Central Election Commission said it would be impossible for Chiu to run in the legislative elections scheduled for December.
'Under the election and recall law, those sentenced to jail will not be eligible to register as a candidate to run in the elections. Even if Chiu is released on parole ahead of the December poll, he is still ineligible to run,' commission spokesman Teng Tien-yu said. He said Chiu would be allowed to enter the election only if he was given an amnesty or a reduced sentence.
Chiu said on Thursday he would apply for release on parole after serving half of his sentence, in line with the parole law, and would still have time to run in the poll.
Without an amnesty or reduced term, Mr Teng said, even if the KMT wanted to give Chiu an 'at-large post' (legislative seats allocated to a party according to its percentage of votes), Chiu would still not qualify for the seat. The KMT has considered giving Chiu such a post to encourage him to continue investigating the government.
Chiu yesterday vowed to keep his legislative status to teach the authorities a lesson.
'I will continue to serve as legislator because the court has not stripped off my civil rights, meaning I can still hold public office.'
He asked voters and supporters to keep providing his office with information that would lead to the exposure of secret, illegal deals involving politicians and officials.
