VICE PREMIER CHIOU AND FOREIGN MINISTER HUANG

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 TAIPEI 000626 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/06/2018 TAGS: PGOV TW SUBJECT: VICE PREMIER CHIOU AND FOREIGN MINISTER HUANG RESIGN OVER DOLLAR DIPLOMACY SCANDAL Classified By: AIT Director Stephen M. Young, Reason 1.4 (b/d) ¶1. (C) Summary: Vice Premier Chiou I-jen and Foreign Minister James Huang resigned on May 6 to take responsibility for the potential loss of USD 30 million in a failed scheme to establish diplomatic relations with Papua New GUINEA (PNG). In 2006, then NSC Secretary General Chiou I-jen instructed FM Huang to work with two middlemen to arrange a deal to establish relations with PNG. The Foreign Ministry transferred USD 30 million to a joint private account held by the two middlemen in a Singapore bank, the money to be paid eventually to PNG. When the PNG deal fell through, the Foreign Ministry tried unsuccessfully to recover the money and then turned to legal action, which led to the initial stories about the scandal in the Singapore press. The recent appearance of a list purporting to show planned kickbacks to Chiou, Huang, and others has added to the furor over the scandal here. Chiou, who has been named a corruption suspect, and Huang are both cooperating with the prosecutors and insist on their innocence. Presidential Office Secretary General Mark Chen told the Director on May 6 that the administration is in now full "damage control" mode in hopes of tamping down the controversy before the May 20 inauguration. End Summary. Chiou I-jen, James Huang Resign -------------- ¶2. (C) Vice Premier Chiou I-jen and Foreign Minister James Huang resigned their respective positions on May 6, taking responsibility for their roles in organizing and implementing a failed scheme to buy diplomatic recognition from Papua New Guinea (PNG) in 2006 that may cost the Taiwan treasury USD 30 million. Chiou's announcement follows his withdrawal from the DPP and his being named by the prosecutors as a suspect in what is now a corruption investigation on May 5. Chiou has admitted to exercising poor judgment in trusting two questionable middlemen, but asserts he has not taken any money and was unaware of all the details of the deal which were handled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. ¶3. (C) Comment: Chiou, a founding member of the DPP and former leader of the New Tide faction, has long been President Chen,s chief advisor and policy coordinator. Because of his association with the New Tide and his reputation as a powerful behind-the-scenes kingmaker, Chiou �00A;has made a number of enemies over the years within his own party. The timing of the current scandal, two weeks before the presidential transition and just as the DPP is trying to recover from a dismal performance in recent elections and elect a new chairperson, is especially unfortunate. This helps explain some of the venom being directed at Chiou by a number of his erstwhile DPP comrades. End Comment. How it all Began -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Chiou, along with Foreign Minister James Huang and Vice Minister of Defense Henry Ko, were first questioned over the weekend by the Taipei Prosecutors Office, which has launched an investigation into the disappearance of the USD 30 million. MOFA in 2006 reportedly wired the funds to a private bank account in Singapore held jointly by two middlemen, Ching Jih-ju and Wu Shih-tsai, who were Taiwan's intermediaries with PNG officials. Chiou told the press on May 5 that in early 2006 Ching, who Chiou says had been introduced by Ko in 2004, approached Chiou with information that Port Moresby was willing to consider establishing diplomatic relations with Taipei in exchange for financial and other assistance. ¶5. (SBU) Chiou then reportedly instructed FM Huang to work with Ching and Wu in a scheme to establish relations with PNG. Ching and Wu brokered several meetings between PNG and TAIPEI 00000626 002 OF 003 Taiwan government officials, including Chiou and Huang, starting in August 2006. Huang told the press on May 5 that after seeing progress toward a deal he had MOFA transfer the USD 30 million into the joint bank account sometime in September. Huang said he later balked at the terms offered by PNG representatives, which did not include formal diplomatic recognition of Taiwan. After further meetings, including a visit to Taipei by PNG Minister of Commerce in October, failed to produce an acceptable agreement, the Foreign Ministry attempted to retrieve the funds from the joint bank account in Singapore. Huang said a MOFA staffer accompanied Ching to Singapore in order to have the funds wired back to MOFA in December 2007, but Ching absconded after arriving in the city-state. ¶6. (C) Wu, a Singapore national now in Taiwan, claims that he wired the funds from the joint account to Ching,s personal account under Chiou,s instructions, a claim Chiou has denied. Efforts by the Taiwan government to persuade Ching and his family to return the money have failed. According to a media article, Ching, a Taiwan-American dual citizen, reportedly entered the U.S. by car from Canada on May 2. His family owns a two million dollar home in the Los Angeles area, which now reportedly is in the name of one or more of his children. Government in Damage Control Mode -------------- ¶7. (C) The appearance in the media of a list of seven people, including Chiou and Huang, who would purportedly receive "kickbacks" for the PNG deal, has added to the furor here. Both Chiou and Huang are cooperating with the prosecutors and insist they have received no kickbacks. Presidential Office Secretary General Mark Chen told the Director on May 6 that the administration is in now full "damage control" mode in hopes of tamping down the controversy before the May 20 inauguration. President Chen canceled a planned hiking trip to Mount Yushan later this week to deal with this unwelcome last-minute crisis, and he has issued a statement denying involvement in the scandal. Chiou and Huang have both emphasized in their press conferences that the president, although aware that there were negotiations with PNG, did not have direct knowledge of the details and did not take an active part in the proceedings. ¶8. (C) So far, this scandal seems to inolve unwitting Taiwan officials (Chiou and Huang) allowing questionable middlemen to bilk the Foreign Ministry out of USD 30 million. Although Chiou and Huang admit to acting unwisely in trusting the wrong people, at this stage there is no indication that they or other officials were seeking to profit from this failed scheme. Chiou and Huang have held a number of separate press conferences to explain their actions and defend their integrity. While the media is in its standard frenzied mode and some KMT and DPP legislators have expressed outrage, it is quite likely that both parties want this story to die down before the May 20 inauguration. Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) In Director Young's recent discussions with Premier-designate Liu Chao-hsuan and key Ma national security advisor Su Chi, both acknowledged the importance of not allowing this scandal to prevent the next government from using quiet financial assistance to bolster existing diplomatic partners, and perhaps entice new ones. But KMT legislators like the controversial Chiou Yi are proving unable to resist political piling-on against the hated Chen administration. This DPP keystone cop routine buttresses the KMT claim that they can restore honesty and competence to governance after May 20. But they will still face the TAIPEI 00000626 003 OF 003 difficult international challenges that led Chiou and Huang to take this PNG gamble in 2006, one that has now jumped back to bite them so badly. YOUNG