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Chen's office says he
must be there when documents unsealed
By Ko Shu-ling and Rich Chang / STAFF REPORTERS
The office of former president Chen Shui-bian (³¯¤ô«ó) yesterday said it requested
that he and the media be present if the Special Investigation Panel (SIP) opened
sealed documents seized from the former president¡¦s office.
In a statement, the office said the SIP notified it on Sept. 16 that they should
send someone to the SIP office that same morning to discuss the procedure for
opening the 58 sealed cases taken from Chen¡¦s office.
The office said it would send its manager, Chen Sung-shan (³¯²S¤s), to negotiate in
accordance with instructions he obtained from the former president when the two
met last Friday.
Chen Sung-shan would also request that the former president be present, as well
as his lawyer and the press, when the SIP opens the boxes, it said.
Dozens of investigators raided the former president¡¦s current and former offices
on Linyi Street and Guanqian Road respectively on Sept. 15 after allegations
surfaced that he had illegally removed boxes of classified government documents
from the Presidential Office when he left office two years ago.
Attention was first drawn to the issue in June after Chen Shui-bian¡¦s staff
wrote to the Presidential Office asking how they should handle 20 boxes of
official documents they had found.
The Presidential Office asked in writing for the return of the documents, but on
Aug. 10 and again on Aug. 31, Chen Shui-bian¡¦s aides said they would have to
consult with the former president to ask for his approval before the documents
could be retuned.
Earlier this month, the Presidential Office took legal action to reclaim the
documents, saying Chen Shui-bian could have breached security protocols and
endangered national security if the boxes contained classified information.
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