The Chen Shui-bian drama gets weirder

Former president Chen is escorted by police

Sensing that history (and his former party risks) leaving him behind, Chen appears to be resorting to theatrics 

Taiwan’s Ministry of Justice confirmed on Monday that former president Chen Shui-bian, who is serving a 20-year jail sentence for corruption, attempted suicide by hanging on the evening of June 2, the latest in a long list of dramatic events involving the controversial former leader. 

According to reports, the 62-year-old, who served as president from 2000-2008, tried to hang himself with a towel in a bathroom at Taichung Prison’s Pei Teh Hospital, but was stopped by a guard, who immediately sent him over to medical staff for examinations. 

My article, published today in the University of Nottingham’s China Policy Institute Blog, continues here.