FM 'saddened' at having to take 'necessary' legal action against lawmaker

Taipei, May 9 (CNA) Foreign Minister Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) on Thursday said he was "saddened" at having to take legal action against an opposition lawmaker over an alleged confidential document leak, but stressed that doing so was necessary to prevent future leaks that could damage Taiwan.

Speaking during a radio interview, Wu said he understands that taking legal action against Kuomintang (KMT) Legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin (徐巧芯) is expected to send a "shockwave between the relations of the government's legislative and administrative branches."

However, doing so is necessary to prevent future leaks of confidential government documents, Wu added.

"If we don't take swift measures to stop [the leak], there will likely be further harm to our national interests," Wu stressed.

Wu's comments came after MOFA filed a report with the Taipei District Prosecutors Office on Tuesday, accusing Hsu of violating Section One under Article 132 of the Criminal Code.

This followed Hsu making public detailed information from an MOU Taiwan signed with the Czech Republic last December on joint assistance for Ukraine.

That section of the Criminal Code stipulates that a public official who discloses or gives away a document of a secret nature about matters other than the national defense could face a maximum of three years in prison.

The MOU information Hsu revealed on May 5 showed that Taiwan had agreed to provide a US$10 million donation to help rebuild Ukraine's medical infrastructure through an organization called the Czech Health Technology Institute (CHTI). A condition was that 30-40 percent of the funds would be used to purchase medical supplies from Taiwan.

Hsu cited concerns over the potential misuse of taxpayers' money and raised the alarm over MOFA maybe being able to choose which Taiwanese companies were going to be involved in the project.

She criticized MOFA and other government departments for regularly misusing confidentiality to avoid public scrutiny.

When defending herself on Wednesday, Hsu noted that a publication in March by the Czech Republic's foreign ministry also included information in the MOU, for example the fact Taiwan had pledged US$10 million and stipulated 30 percent of the supplies must come from Taiwanese companies.

She added that when making details of the MOU public, she covered some parts so no confidential information could be seen.

Commenting on Hsu's defense Thursday, Wu said his ministry listed the MOU's details as confidential because they could be used by the People's Republic of China (PRC) to pressure Ukraine into refusing Taiwan's assistance.

He said Hsu could still have overseen MOFA's spending by holding a closed-door legislative session or private meeting with MOFA.

Sadly, she chose not to do so before making the details of the MOU public, Wu added.

In fact, after signing the MOU, a copy was sent to all 113 lawmakers for their reference as stipulated in the Conclusion of Treaties Act, according to Wu.

The minister said the publication by the Czech Republic foreign ministry in March and the press release by MOFA in December had given the public a general idea about what the MOU entails.

However, in contrast to Hsu, neither MOFA nor the Czech Republic foreign ministry have made the details of the MOU public, Wu argued.

The minister said Taiwan wanted 30-40 percent of the funds to be used to purchase medical supplies from Taiwan because of two 2014 Legislative Yuan resolutions passed by Democratic Progressive Party and KMT lawmakers to help Taiwanese companies carry out international cooperation projects.

The Czech side will choose the Taiwanese companies to be involved following a tender process, he said.

Meanwhile, CHTI said in a statement Thursday that it was saddened to hear Hsu's claims, calling them "not a reflection of reality."

"We have always been committed to the highest standards of ethical conduct and have worked tirelessly to improve healthcare outcomes worldwide," it added.