THE WORLD HAS SURELY CHANGED, AFRICAN DICTATORS, WATCH OUT

By Reuters
Taipei
September 11 2009

"Ex Taiwan leader jailed for life while son and daughter-in-law were handed down sentences ranging from 20-30 months for related crimes."

Former Taiwan president Chen Shui-bian, known for fiery anti-China rhetoric while in office, was found guilty of corruption on Friday and sentenced to life in prison.

Taipei District Court convicted the two-term president on six charges related to bribery and corruption, closing a fractious, high-profile case that opened nearly three years ago and involved Chen's wife and numerous family members and aides.

He was also fined T$200 million (3.6 million pounds).

Several hundred supporters demonstrated near the court and some threw plastic bottles and trash at police in protest after the verdict and sentence were announced.

Prosecutors had charged Chen with embezzling T$104 million from a special presidential office fund, accepting bribes of about $9 million related to a land procurement deal and taking another $2.73 million in kickbacks to help a contractor win its bid for a government project.

Chen has said the charges were political, denied wrongdoing and will appeal against the verdict which is unlikely to affect China's relations with President Ma Ying-jeou of the China-friendly Nationalist Party (KMT).

Chen's wife, Wu Shu-chen, was convicted on seven counts of graft and also sentenced to life in jail, a court spokesman said in a televised address. She was fined T$300 million.

Chen's son and daughter-in-law were handed down sentences ranging from 20-30 months for related crimes.

While ruling from 2000-2008, Chen upset Beijing by advocating formal independence from China, which has claimed sovereignty over the self-ruled island since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949.