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TAIPEI: Taiwan's former president Chen Shui-bian was back in court on Wednesday as prosecutors sought to detain him in connection with a long-running corruption probe, officials said.
A defiant Chen put his handcuffed hands in the air as he stepped out of the prosecutor's office and shouted "political persecution" before getting into a waiting car when he was arrested on Tuesday.
Chen is accused of money laundering, embezzling government funds, taking bribes and forging documents, a spokesman for the investigation said.
A court hearing to decide if prosecutors could detain him was suspended on Tuesday as the ex-Taiwan president was taken to hospital saying he suffered injuries after being manhandled during his arrest. The hearing resumed after he received treatment for his injuries.
"The muscle of his right arm was slightly injured, according to doctors' diagnosis...the judges decided to resume the court hearing as the former president is still in good shape," a court spokesman said.
Prosecutors denied using any violence during the arrest.
If their demands to hold Chen are met, he would become the first former Taiwanese president to be formally detained, following a graft scandal that has gripped the island for months.
Chen, who retired in May after eight years in power, is under investigation for allegedly embezzling 14.8 million Taiwan dollars (US$480,500) from the government.
Under interrogation on Tuesday, Chen chose not to answer some questions, while dozens of supporters protested outside the investigators' office.
He has accused the China-friendly Kuomintang government of persecuting him under pressure from Beijing, which considers Taiwan a renegade province to be reunified with China, by force if necessary.
"The KMT and the Chinese Communist Party see me as their number one prisoner as I am the biggest stone blocking their way to reunification," pro-independence Chen told reporters.
He accused his successor, Taiwan's President Ma Ying-jeou, of pursuing a political agenda and punishing him for violent demonstrations during a visit by Beijing's top envoy to the island last week.
The Chinese envoy, "Chen Yunlin, had a bad time in Taiwan... so Ma Ying-jeou wants to put me in jail as a sacrifice to appease China. I am very honoured and proud to play such a role," the former president said.
"I will not be imprisoned in vain... Long live Taiwan democracy. Long live Taiwan independence," he said.
The Chinese envoy's historic visit to Taipei last week was billed as bringing China and Taiwan closer economically, but was marred by huge anti-Beijing protests that left scores injured.
Chen's opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) immediately cried foul after Tuesday's arrest, saying it was politically motivated.
"This political manipulation is aimed at destroying the DPP and insulting a former leader by handcuffing him. The DPP will not be defeated," said lawmaker Lee Chun-yee.
But Kuomintang lawmaker Lee Ching-hua hailed Tuesday's arrest as "belated justice."
Political analyst Liao Dai-chi said Chen's arrest was likely to heighten divisions between the opposing political camps.
"I think the DPP will take to the streets frequently in the foreseeable future to protest what it calls the political persecution of Chen in order to win public sympathy," said Liao of the National Sun Yat-sen University.
Chen has previously admitted using false receipts to claim money from the state, but insisted those funds were used for "secret diplomatic missions" - not personal benefit.
The ex-leader, his wife, son, daughter-in-law, and brother-in-law have all been named as defendants in a separate money laundering case.
Taiwanese prosecutors say US$21 million was sent to Swiss bank accounts belonging to Chen's daughter-in-law in 2007. The funds have since been frozen.
Chen has admitted his wife wired US$20 million abroad from past campaign funds but said she did so without his knowledge. He denies laundering money. - AFP/de
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