Chen suffers risk of
dementia without adequate medical treatment, doctor says
By Chris Wang / Staff reporter
Imprisoned former president Chen Shui-bian (³¯¤ô«ó) could develop dementia within
six months if he is not given proper medical attention, a physician said
yesterday. Visiting overseas human rights activists have also expressed concerns
about Chen¡¦s medical welfare.
Chen, who has been out of prison for medical examinations since last Thursday,
is suffering from a stutter induced by brain damage and could develop dementia
within six months or a year, National Taiwan University Hospital physician Ko
Wen-je (¬_¤åõ) said yesterday.
Ko, who visited and diagnosed Chen in Taipei Prison, where he is serving a
17-and-a-half-year sentence for corruption, made the comments as he and
Ketagalan Institute chief executive Cheng Sheu-shin (¾G²Q¤ß) yesterday appealed to
the Control Yuan over the way in which the judicial system had dealt with Chen¡¦s
deteriorating health.
The placing of political concerns before medical expertise by the Ministry of
Justice is why the former president¡¦s health has deteriorated so much in prison,
Ko said.
Meanwhile, a visiting delegation from the US-based Human Rights Action Center
issued a statement on Monday expressing concerns about Chen¡¦s prison cell.
The delegation included Hans Wahl, a Paris-based human rights activist, and
Harreld Dinkins, an expert on East and Southeast Asian affairs, neither of whom
are affiliated with any political organization.
Chen¡¦s treatment in prison could only be compared to that given to high-risk
offenders, Wahl said, adding that while Chen is now allowed access to a desk, he
has to eat and sleep on the floor as well as endure inadequate sanitary
facilities which are not normally found in modern democracies governed by the
rule of law.
Chen¡¦s lack of regular contact with other inmates and very limited contact with
the outside world also posed concerns, he said.
¡§Imprisonment is itself a punishment and should never be used for further
punishment,¡¨ he said, adding that an advanced democracy should not ¡§allow itself
to sink to meet only the lowest standards in its treatment of those it holds in
its prison system.¡¨
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