Keelung official released on bail in recall campaign case

Taipei, April 30 (CNA) The Taiwan Keelung District Court has ordered the director of the Keelung Civil Affairs Department to be released on NT$400,000 (US$12,436) bail, in connection with alleged legal offenses in a local campaign to recall two city councilors.

The court announced the decision at 11:53 p.m. Tuesday.

It said Chang Yuan-hsiang (張淵翔) was strongly suspected of accessing the household registration system to verify or obtain personal data in order to assist with the recall petition targeting Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) city councilors Cheng Wen-ting (鄭文婷) and Jiho Tiun (張之豪).

After being questioned, Chang "admitted" to personal data protection offenses and document forgery, the court said, and it decided to deny a request by prosecutors to detain him and instead order him released on bail after taking into account Chang's confession.

The court also ordered that Chang reside at a designated location, and that the location could not be changed without permission.

The court action came after prosecutors requested the detention of Chang; Chi Wen-chuan (紀文荃), who heads the recall petition campaign against Cheng; and Chang Chin-fa (張金發), the director of the opposition Kuomintang's (KMT) Ren'ai District chapter in Keelung.

Both Chi and Chang Chin-fa were ordered to be detained and held incommunicado.

The court found that although the two individuals denied all allegations, a review of the evidence indicated there was reason to strongly suspect that they had violated the Personal Data Protection Act and committed documentary forgery.

With several suspects still yet to be summoned for questioning, it is likely Chi and Chang Chin-fa could collude with each other and destroy uncovered evidence, the court said, and therefore, their detention was "necessary."

The court rulings came after the prosecutors in charge of an investigation into the use of alleged fraudulent signatures on the recall petitions against DPP city councilors raided six locations in Keelung on Monday.

They searched the KMT Keelung Chapter and the residences of recall organizers targeting Cheng and Tiun, before bringing in 10 individuals for questioning as either suspects or witnesses. By midnight on Tuesday, three others had been released on varying bail amounts, while four people were sent home.

The raids mirrored other actions by prosecutors around Taiwan in recent weeks, mostly targeted at opposition KMT offices to crack down on alleged signature fraud in campaigns to recall DPP lawmakers or local government officials.

As of Wednesday, prosecutors had raided KMT chapters in several areas, including Taipei, New Taipei, Keelung City, Yilan County and Kaohsiung.

The investigations have resulted in the detention of several KMT chapter officials, including KMT Taipei chapter Chair Huang Lu Chin‑ju (黃呂錦茹).