August 20, 2014 3:00 pm JST
DEBBY WU, Nikkei staff writer
TAIPEI -- A Taiwanese official sacked for allegedly leaking sensitive information to Beijing has denied any wrongdoing and said he is being persecuted for disagreeing with his superiors on issues related to China.
Chang Hsien-Yao, the former deputy minister of the Mainland Affairs Council, made the comments late Tuesday. Over the weekend, he was suddenly removed from his post as the senior official in charge of China relations. The council is a cabinet-level agency responsible for implementing the island's policies on China.
Critics have slammed the cabinet for the vague and changing details surrounding Chang's removal. Initially, the cabinet said in a statement Saturday that Chang had resigned for personal reasons, but he soon told the local press he was sacked.
Taiwanese officials were evasive when asked about the factors behind Chang's ousting until a council spokeswoman said Tuesday that Chang was fired on suspicion of breaching national security -- a common reference to an official illicitly passing classified material to China -- and that investigators will be looking into possible acts of misconduct.
In an interview with local cable station TVBS late Tuesday night, Chang insisted he did nothing wrong and broke into tears several times.
"During my two-and-half years at the Mainland Affairs Council, I have done everything exactly according to the instructions of my superiors," Chang said. "There is no fault to be found in my work."
Continued Chang: "I have only one explanation for my own predicament: I have offended some people by raising my objection when I felt some approaches to handling certain China affairs were ill-considered. But now I am being persecuted like the mafia going after a traitor."
The former official revealed that when his immediate boss, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Wang Yu-chi, first informed him of his imminent severance last Thursday, Wang also told him he would be given a position as a chairman at a company after leaving office.
At one point during the TVBS interview, an emotional Chang hinted he was ready to take his own life to defend his own integrity.
"I have written down everything that has happened in my will," Chang said. "I have planned for the worst."
Responding to Chang's rebuttal, the council said late Tuesday it hopes Chang will cooperate with investigators.
The council has come under heavy criticism from opposition lawmakers and political commentators for being unclear about the circumstances surrounding the departure of a senior official in such a sensitive position.
http://asia.nikkei.com/Politics-Economy/International-Relations/Ousted-Taiwan-official-denies-security-breach
