This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It will not be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/7723686.stm

The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Taiwan court orders Chen arrest Taiwan former president detained
(about 3 hours later)
A court in Taiwan has ordered former President Chen Shui-bian, who faces corruption charges, to be taken into detention. Taiwan's former President Chen Shui-bian, who faces corruption charges, has been formally taken into custody.
Court proceedings had been suspended on Tuesday, when Mr Chen said he needed hospital treatment after being pushed outside the court building. A court had earlier approved a request by prosecutors to detain him after Mr Chen spent several hours answering questions in the prosecutor's office.
When he was led from the office in handcuffs he raised his arms into the air and shouted the words "political persecution" before getting into a car.
The former president, who stepped down in May, denies all the graft charges.
Mr Chen has been taken to Tucheng prison in the suburbs of the capital, Taipei.
Police have reportedly tightened security around the jail amid threats from his supporters to protest over what they claim was an "unfair trial".
Mr Chen can now be held for up to four months.
Muscle tear
Court proceedings had to be suspended on Tuesday, when Mr Chen said he needed hospital treatment after being pushed outside the court building.
He was returned to court for an overnight sitting after doctors found he had only a minor muscle tear.He was returned to court for an overnight sitting after doctors found he had only a minor muscle tear.
The former president, who stepped down in May, denies all the charges. Mr Chen is accused of money laundering and illegally using a special presidential fund.
He is accused of money laundering and illegally using a special presidential fund. But the staunch nationalist accuses the new administration of persecuting him to bow to the wishes of Beijing.
But Mr Chen, a staunch nationalist, accuses the new administration of persecuting him to bow to the wishes of Beijing.
Mr Chen is an ardent supporter of Taiwanese independence, and a trenchant critic of President Ma Ying-jeou's Kuomintang (KMT) administration, which he accuses of pandering to Beijing.Mr Chen is an ardent supporter of Taiwanese independence, and a trenchant critic of President Ma Ying-jeou's Kuomintang (KMT) administration, which he accuses of pandering to Beijing.
Mr Chen and his family have been mired in corruption allegations since 2006, when his son-in-law was charged with insider trading on the stock market and then jailed for seven years.Mr Chen and his family have been mired in corruption allegations since 2006, when his son-in-law was charged with insider trading on the stock market and then jailed for seven years.
The charges have damaged the reputation of the main opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), observers say, which now faces a rough ride in local elections next year. The charges have damaged the reputation of the main opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), observers say, which may now face a rough ride in next year's local elections.
Taiwan has been ruled separately since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949; the defeated Kuomintang retreated to Taiwan to create a self-governing entity.Taiwan has been ruled separately since the end of the Chinese civil war in 1949; the defeated Kuomintang retreated to Taiwan to create a self-governing entity.
But Beijing sees the island as a breakaway province which should be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary.But Beijing sees the island as a breakaway province which should be reunified with the mainland, by force if necessary.