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