US embassy cable - 04TAIPEI3494

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TAIPEI 003494 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS AIT/W 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/10/2013 
TAGS: PGOV, TW 
SUBJECT: HIGH COURT DISMISSES MARCH 20 ELECTION CASE 
 
 
Classified By: AIT Deputy Director David J. Keegan, Reason: 1.4 (B/D) 
 
1. (C) Summary: The Taiwan High Court rejected a case filed 
by opposition leaders Lien Chan and James Soong to overturn 
the March 20 election.  The court announced that the 
opposition failed to support its claims that President Chen 
Shui-bian won the election through illegal means.  Opposition 
lawyers immediately announced their intention to appeal the 
ruling and expressed confidence that a separate case 
challenging the conduct of the election would result in a 
more favorable verdict.  Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) 
officials urged Lien to follow the example set by Senator 
John Kerry and gracefully accept defeat.  Instead, KMT 
Chairman Lien Chan declared that the court's ruling marked 
the "darkest day in the history of Taiwan's judiciary."  On 
the eve of the verdict, Lien offered the inflammatory 
suggestion to the KMT's Central Standing Committee (CSC) that 
Chen be subject to assassination as an illegitimate leader. 
The November 4 decision did not come as a surprise to either 
camp.  However, observers on both sides believe the 
Pan-Blue's apparent rejection of the legal process may 
alienate moderate voters in the December 11 election.  End 
Summary. 
 
Verdict In: Lien is a Loser 
--------------------------- 
 
2. (SBU) The Taiwan High Court on November 4 rejected a civil 
suit brought by the Lien-Soong campaign over the results of 
the March 20 presidential election.  The Pan-Blue alleged 
that Chen's victory was illegitimate because of voting 
irregularities and the alleged concoction of the March 19 
shooting of Chen and Vice President Annette Lu.  A High Court 
spokesman held a press conference after the announcement to 
explain the court's rulings on each part of the Pan-Blue's 
case.  The spokesman noted that the court's full recount of 
the March 20 ballots changed the election results by only 
4,000 votes (reducing Chen's margin of victory from 29,518 
votes to 25,563 votes).  The court also found that the 
plaintiffs failed to prove their allegations that the March 
19 shooting incident was staged, that the decision to hold 
the referendum on the same day as the election skewed the 
results, or that military and police personnel were deprived 
of their right to vote due to the shooting incident.  As the 
losers in the case, the Pan-Blue was ordered to pay nearly 
NTD 17 million (USD500,000) in court fees.  Lawyers 
representing the Pan-Blue leaders announced plans to appeal 
the decision immediately after the verdict was announced. 
 
3. (C) KMT Chairman Lien rejected the court's verdict, 
declaring November 4 the "darkest day in the history of 
Taiwan's judiciary."  Lien asserted that it was not the 
Pan-Blue's responsibility to provide proof to back its 
allegations, but rather the court's duty to thoroughly 
investigate them.  In the days leading up to the court 
decision, the Pan-Blue camp placed ads in major papers 
denouncing the legal process and accusing the DPP government 
of manipulating the courts.  At a November 3 KMT CSC meeting 
with open press, Lien sparked controversy by using an ancient 
Chinese phrase ("renren zhizhu") to suggest that the 
president should be assassinated if the court ruled in Chen's 
favor.  A proposal by Lien that the KMT mobilize supporters 
to surround the courthouse before the verdict was announced 
was reportedly rejected by party vice chairmen Wang Jin-pyng 
and Ma Ying-jeou.  Nevertheless, several hundred Pan-Blue 
supporters along with a handful of Pan-Blue Legislative Yuan 
(LY) candidates gathered in front of the court to protest the 
verdict.  Some protesters threw eggs at riot police. 
 
4. (C) Despite their combative public stance, Pan-Blue 
officials privately say they did not expect the court to find 
in its favor.  People First Party (PFP) Deputy Policy Chief 
Lee Yun-jie told AIT on the eve of the court decision that 
there was zero expectation the case would go for Lien and 
Soong.  "This isn't a matter of political interference in the 
judiciary," he stated, "it is simply that no judge in Taiwan 
would consider overturning a major election, even if there 
was clear proof of fraud."  KMT Policy Chief Tseng 
Yung-chuan, a Lien loyalist, told AIT weeks before the 
verdict that the Pan-Blue camp had largely written off the 
challenge to the election results, but still held out hope 
that a separate court case filed against the Central Election 
Commission (CEC) over the voting process might produce a more 
positive result. 
 
DPP Response: The Kerry Model 
----------------------------- 
 
5. (C) Presidential Office Secretary General Su Tseng-chang 
publicly urged Lien and Soong to look to Senator John Kerry's 
statesman-like concession speech on November 3 as a model for 
resolving the divisions that have existed within Taiwan since 
the March 20 election.  Presidential Office Secretary Liu 
Shih-chung told AIT that the DPP would use Kerry's concession 
speech as a core theme in its campaign for the December 11 LY 
election.  "The timing of Kerry's graceful concession speech 
juxtaposed with Lien's threat against the president could not 
have been better from our perspective," Liu remarked. 
 
Pan-Blue Reaction: Strike Two 
----------------------------- 
 
6. (C) The court decision was not unexpected, but Lien Chan's 
statements in the lead-up to the ruling have handed the DPP 
yet another free PR victory.  For weeks, Pan-Blue moderates 
have expressed fears that an emotional, provocative reaction 
by Lien or Soong to the court ruling would further alienate 
centrist voters in December.  What is more troubling than 
Lien's outburst is silence on the part of the two contenders 
for future KMT leadership, Ma Ying-jeou and Wang Jin-pyng. 
The KMT's immediate response after the verdict was announced 
was less provocative than its earlier public statements, but 
Lien's November 3 apparent threat against the president has 
already set back the KMT's efforts to portray itself as a 
responsible, moderate voice of opposition. 
PAAL