THE CASE FOR CONCLUDING AN AIT-TECRO EXTRADITION

C O N F I D E N T I A L AIT TAIPEI 000277


STATE FOR D FOR PAMELA PARK
STATE FOR L/LEI/MKULISH, KWILSON; L/ESA/MCOMFORT
STATE FOR DS/IP/EAP

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/12/2019
TAGS: PREL CJAN KCRM PGOV ASEC US TW
SUBJECT: THE CASE FOR CONCLUDING AN AIT-TECRO EXTRADITION
AGREEMENT

REF: A. 1995 SECSTATE 316771

B. 1995 TAIPEI 335

C. 2008 STATE 5865

D. 2008 TAIPEI 170

E. TAIPEI 214

Classified By: Director Stephen M. Young,
Reasons: 1.4(B) and (D).


1. (C) Summary: Despite the absence of an extradition
agreement, Taiwan has consistently assisted U.S. law
enforcement agencies in returning fugitives wanted in the
U.S. for major crimes. Taiwan, however, has not been able to
secure the return of its fugitives from the U.S., resulting
in more than 130 criminal suspects at large in the United
States and creating a widespread perception in Taiwan of a
lack of reciprocity in our law enforcement relationship. In
the wake of several high-profile cases, some in Taiwan have
called for a reevaluation of Taiwan's law enforcement
cooperation with the United States. The Ma administration
has now publicly announced the goal of pursuing a U.S.-Taiwan
extradition agreement as one of its highest priorities in our
bilateral relations. End Summary.

Early Background on Extradition Discussions
--------------


2. (C) A series of high-profile cases in the mid-1990s (refs
A and B) generated initial U.S. interest in pursuing an
AIT-TECRO extradition agreement. At the time, the U.S. DOJ
encountered difficulties in obtaining the return of Huang
Kuang-chieh, a fugitive from U.S. law enforcement wanted in
connection with a major heroin smuggling case. Huang was
protected from deportation because he possessed "ROC"
nationality. Taiwan's law, specifically Article 4 of the Law
on Extradition, prohibits the extradition of Taiwan nationals
in the absence of an extradition treaty with the requesting
party. Because it was not clear at the time that we would be
able to extradite Taiwan nationals on the basis of an
extradition "agreement" vice "treaty," the idea of concluding
such an agreement was shelved. (Note: Because of the
unofficial nature of our relations, the U.S. can conclude
AIT-TECRO agreements, but not treaties, with Taiwan.) In
March 2008, however, Taiwan provided the U.S. with a
non-paper and judicial interpretation by Taiwan's highest
court which clarified that an extradition "agreement" would
have the same legal standing as a "treaty," removing the
earlier impediments. (See septel for details.)

Taiwan Cooperative on Returning Fugitives
--------------


3. (C) Even in the absence of an extradition agreement,
Taiwan law enforcement agencies have demonstrated their
willingness to cooperate with U.S. requests to return
fugitives to the United States. There have been five such
cases over the past eighteen months alone, including one U.S.
national named on America's Most Wanted list. This
particular individual, wanted for drugging and sodomizing
patients, fraudulently obtained Taiwan residency and had been
living and working in Taiwan for more than a year. Taiwan's
Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) and the National
Immigration Agency (NIA),working closely with AIT,
ultimately detained the subject until U.S. law enforcement
agents could escort him back to the United States.


4. (C) Some of the U.S. fugitives who chose to flee to Taiwan
doubtless hoped the lack of a U.S.-Taiwan extradition
agreement would help them escape justice. The implementation
of an extradition agreement would deter fugitives from
seeking refuge in Taiwan and would enhance cooperation by
reassuring Taiwan that an effective framework exists for the
return of fugitives in both directions.

Taiwan Fugitives Seek Haven in the U.S.
--------------


5. (C) Taiwan's Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau
(MJIB) annually delivers to AIT's RSO and Consular Fraud
Prevention Unit a CD and book listing information on
fugitives from Taiwan's legal system. According to police
contacts and MOFA officials involved in work on extradition
agreements, a large number of Taiwan's criminal fugitives
seek refuge in the United States. Recent information
provided to AIT by Taiwan law enforcement agencies indicates
there are 133 fugitives currently in the United States. More
than three-quarters of them are wanted for white collar
crimes such as fraud, embezzlement, and tax evasion.


6. (C) The highest profile case involves former Rebar Group
head Wang You-theng and his wife, who fled Taiwan in December
2006, just prior to the launch of an investigation of
securities fraud and embezzlement. After first traveling to
China, Wang and his wife, a U.S. citizen, entered the United
States in January 2007. When they subsequently left the U.S.
for southeast Asia, the Taiwan authorities made a dramatic
but unsuccessful effort to intercept them in Singapore.
Managing to return to the U.S., Wang was detained for a time
in immigration facilities, but was released after six months
and is living in LA. Chen You-hao, another high-profile
financial fugitive wanted for embezzling almost NTD 1 billion
from companies in the late 1990s and early 2000s, fled to the
mainland following his indictment in 2002. In January 2008,
Chen, like Wang, also re-entered the United States. In the
absence of an extradition agreement, DOS, DOJ, and DHS tried
to use deportation proceedings to return both Wang and Chen
to Taiwan, but were unsuccessful because of pending
applications with DHS/CIS to enter or remain in the United
States.

Taiwan's Strong Interest in an Extradition Agreement
-------------- --------------


7. (C) In the wake of these high-profile cases, AIT officers
and Taiwan counterparts began informal discussions to gauge
interest in a possible extradition agreement (ref C). Since
last year, Taiwan senior officials have expressed interest in
concluding such an agreement. In March 2008, a Taiwan
delegation led by Vice Minister of Justice Kuo Lin-yung
discussed the issue with officials from DOS and DOJ. In June
2008, Foreign Minister Ou and Vice Foreign Minister Hsia
raised the issue in meetings with AIT, EAP/TC Coordinator
Mann, and Senate Foreign Relations Senior Staff Member Frank
Januzzi In July, TECRO Representative Jason Yuan told the
press Taiwan would give priority to concluding an extradition
agreement.


8. (C) In late 2008, Taiwan interest in an extradition
agreement increased further when it learned that U.S. law
requires an agreement in place in order to qualify for the
U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP). AIT has made clear that an
extradition agreement is necessary but by no means sufficient
to qualify for the VWP.


9. (C) President Ma Ying-jeou himself has expressed strong
support for an extradition agreement, beginning with his
meeting with Presidential Envoy Andrew Card in May 2008. In
October 2008, President Ma publicly urged the negotiation of
an extradition agreement in a meeting with members of the
U.S. National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG). Most
recently, he stressed in an interview with the New York Times
that an extradition agreement was one of his top priorities
for the development of U.S.-Taiwan relations.

Concerns About Reciprocity
--------------


10. (C) Recently, concerns about reciprocity in returning
fugitives have begun surfacing here, concerns that, if not
addressed, could potentially affect our law enforcement
cooperation. On March 6, Taiwan turned over a U.S. fugitive
to U.S. law enforcement agents for return to California to
face child molestation charges. Shortly after the CIB first
detained the individual in February, however, a retired
senior Taiwan diplomat (Loh I-cheng) wrote an op-ed article
calling for the Ma administration to exchange the U.S.
fugitive for Wang You-theng. The Ministries of Justice and
Foreign Affairs quickly responded publicly that Loh's
suggestion was impractical and inappropriate. Nonetheless,
Loh's article drew public attention to the perception that
Taiwan has come out on the short end in law enforcement
cooperation because of the lack of an extradition agreement
with the U.S. (ref E). Taiwan delayed deporting the subject
for several days, apparently because of the controversy
generated by Loh's article. Our Taiwan law enforcement
counterparts have stressed the need for an extradition
agreement to facilitate continued cooperation in these cases.

Comment
--------------


11. (C) We believe it is now time to move expeditiously to
negotiate and conclude an AIT-TECRO extradition agreement
with Taiwan. For many in Taiwan, the U.S. now appears to be
a safehaven for its fugitives from justice. In turn, this
has clearly made it more difficult for Taiwan law enforcement
officials to continue the high level of support they have
provided us over the past years. More broadly, this issue
has now become a very high priority for the Ma administration
in our bilateral relations. Unlike Taiwan's desire for an
FTA and Visa Waiver Program, we see the conclusion of an
extradition agreement as feasible in the near term. More
importantly, we see it as in the U.S. interest to underscore
our commitment to international law enforcement cooperation.


YOUNG