Ko Wen-je Faces Court After 200 Days in Detention

After an extended detention, Taiwan People's Party founder and former Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je has appeared in court on corruption charges.

Transcript

00:00After almost 200 days of near-constant detention,

00:05Taiwan People's Party founder Ke Wen-je arrives,

00:09hidden from public view, for his day in court.

00:12And those who watch the proceedings say it is an intense hearing.

00:17A day after the government watchdog fined Ke over US$100,000

00:22and seized US$1.7 million in assets over unlawful transactions

00:26related to his run for president,

00:28prosecutors here say Ke was also involved in a corrupt real estate development deal

00:33during his earlier days as Taipei mayor.

00:36And they want Ke in prison for 28 and a half years.

00:40But Ke and his co-defendants in the real estate case have pled not guilty.

00:45Ke says prosecutors, political rivals, and some in the media

00:49are out to stain his reputation.

00:52He says one prosecutor even tried to blackmail him into admitting guilt.

00:56And Ke's supporters say he's the victim of political persecution.

01:17Even simple facts are in dispute, though.

01:20Prosecutors say Ke took meetings with representatives of a shopping mall

01:24asking for a favor and approved documents for them.

01:27Witnesses say Ke angrily called these accusations false.

01:32It was a draining six hours in court with Ke's family in attendance

01:37and proceedings having to stop twice when emotions ran too high.

01:41But this is far from the end of Ke's case,

01:44with the court yet to decide on whether to extend his detention for two more months.

01:49In a year of fraught political tensions,

01:52few are likely to be more contentious than this.

01:55Luffy Lee and John Van Triest for Taiwan Plus.