The Diane Lee (李慶安) case broke last week when a local tabloid, Next magazine, reported that Lee, a prominent KMT legislator, had US citizenship. It is illegal for ROC elected officials to hold office while being a citizen of another country, so Lee was immediately threatened with the loss of her seat in Taipei city's sixth district and lots of cash. Denying everything, she threatened to sue....She said she obtained permanent residency in the US in 1985 and citizenship in 1991, but later gave up her citizenship.
Article 20 of the Nationality Law (國籍法), which took effect on June 20, 2001, states that foreign citizens are prohibited from holding government office.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus reported Lee’s case to the Taipei Prosecutors’ Office for investigation after the Next article in March.
Lee would have to return her salary as a Taipei City council from 1994 to 1998 and as a legislator since 1998 — estimated at NT$100 million (US$3.2 million) — if the allegation is true.
She would also lose her job as a legislator, forcing a by-election in Taipei City’s sixth district.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has denied Next's allegations that it investigated Lee's citizenship. Although the case has only surfaced recently, apparently the DPP referred the case to Taipei prosecutors back in March.
The DPP caucus reported Lee’s case to the Taipei Prosecutors’ Office for investigation in March.
....
Wang said yesterday that the legislature had referred two related proposals — one by the DPP to investigate the nationality status of all lawmakers and the other by the KMT that would include all government officials — to cross-party negotiation.
The parties agreed on the KMT version of the bill on Friday. Dual citizenship is not exactly unknown among the governing classes; given that the greater number of government officials are KMT, it would seem that any investigation of citizenship would punish that party more. Meanwhile the US has issued almost the same characterizations of the Lee's citizenship issue that it did for Ma's alleged Green card:
The Central News Agency (CNA) yesterday cited an unnamed U.S. State Department official as saying that American citizens do not automatically lose their citizenship just because they are serving in a foreign government.
Any U.S. nationals who want to give up their citizenship must complete all formalities, which include the signing of an oath of renunciation before a U.S. diplomatic or consular officer at a U.S. embassy or consulate, the official was cited as saying.
"Renunciations that do not meet the conditions described above have no legal effect," the official said.
The U.S. official explained that although serving in a foreign government is one of the legal conditions for the loss of nationality, the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act also states that such an act must be performed "voluntarily and with intent to relinquish U.S. citizenship."
Therefore, the formalities must be completed, he said.
In other words you can't "automatically" lose your citizenship -- you have to take serious and purposeful steps to give it up. Unless Lee has carried out the process with the US government, she has not lost her citizenship. And if she has US citizenship, she's toast....
Who benefits? Well, Lien Chan's son appears to be the likely KMT candidate in case of a by-election.
A son of former Kuomintang (KMT) Chairman Lien Chan has downplayed speculation that he stands a good chance of succeeding a legislator who may lose her seat because of allegedly possessing dual nationality.All I will say about the younger Lien is that he is a fine illustration of the old saying that "the apple does not fall far from the tree."
Lien Sheng-wen said until the judicial authorities have made a ruling against KMT Legislator Diane Lee over her alleged dual nationality case, the by-election is not a real issue.
Lee was one of the legislators who originally defected from the KMT to the PFP and then went back again a couple of years ago, and one of the loudest voices calling for a reconciliation of the two parties. At one time it looked as though she might be headed for greater posts, having contemplated a run at Taipei mayor. She is the daughter of the very influential KMT official Lee Huan, one of the Old Guard KMT who opposed the accession of Lee Teng-hui to the KMT Chairmanship.
[Taiwan]
Imho, there are 3 women in Taiwan politics that are the ultimate douchebags, one is Hong Hsiu-chu, the other is CSB's wife Wu Shu-Chen and the third is Diane Lee.
ReplyDeleteDiane Lee always troubled me because she seemed to be a rabid anti-American. It is now almost shocking to learn that she has US citizenship. There are also the two strange episodes that highlight her career; the fight that she provoked with gangster Lo Fu su (and later demanded compensation for) and the scandal she started by slandering the health minister as being gay (just to get publicity - as I remember she was on TV numerous times insisting she was right)
For her to get busted over this case would be some small justice for all the spiteful and harmful crap she has pulled over the years.
BTW, I wonder if her mentor ex gov/ ex Pres, VP and Taipei mayor wannabe James Soong holds US citizenship?
I also wonder why it is so difficult for the Justice dept to just pick up the phone and call their contact at AIT to get a simple yes or no answer on citizenship. (or the UK, AU or JP reps, since these four countries are where 98% of Taiwanese immigrate to besides the PRC.)
Yup, Diane Lee is still a US citizen for sure. After three United States Supreme Court decisions, last been the Vance v. Terrazas, the State department pretty much make it only one way to lose your citizenship. She should resign and leave KMT.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I do think the law should change for Academia, or Chi-Huey Wong (he is not only a US citizen, but a member of US science academy) and many academics in Taiwan holding any national university professorship are in trouble, too.
Alas, reeb, according to what's been explained to me, the US system is set up so that the putative citizenship holder has to initiate the process in order for AIT to discover whether she has citizenship. It seems tailor made for all the KMT bigwigs to hold dual citizenship, eh?
ReplyDeleteMichael
If it is up to the person to initiate the paperwork to negate the citizenship (or have someone check your status), I have to wonder again if President Ma is still a US citizen. AFAIK, he has never given a clear answer.
ReplyDeleteJust like Diane Lee, all he has done was show a USA visa implying that he wasn't a citizen, but what is the truth?
I know most KMT'ers say it doesn't matter, move on, etc., but it does matter. After going through all the hoops to get the citizenship in the first place, to negate it is a big step in life, right up there with getting married.
If he went to a US consular's office to initiate this process, I think it he would surely remember this. Ma says he doesn't, but I call b.s. on this one.
I no nothing about the legal stuff, but I would think getting around the roadblock Michael addresses would be easy.
ReplyDeleteIf Diane Lee admits that she was once a citizen, but says she is no longer, then it should be easy to ask someone if Diane Lee has ever formally annulled her citizenship. If nobody has a record of this, than she must still be a citizen. It is much harder to lose your citizenship than to lose a Green Card. Someone will know this, if the AIT doesn't.
yes, if Lee had done it, all she'd have to do is wave the authentic records in front of the media. That would end this lickety-split. But I don't think she ever actually did it.
ReplyDeleteMichael
So if Diane Lee (and maybe Ma) are still citizens, aren't they in some sense totally compromised to the U.S. government? If any serious issue comes up where the U.S. insists on having it their way, they (the USG) can always threaten to send proof of extant citizenship on the Taiwan courts and media.
ReplyDeleteNot that my government would ever blackmail anyone or anything...
Ma is still a US citizen. AFAIK, he has never given a clear answer.
ReplyDeleteMa only had green card which is a completely different issue (he never had US citizenship). Not going to explain anymore if you still don't get it.
US citizenship is a whole different story because of our 14th Amendment.
I don't think many people actually believe Ma is a citizen. The green card issue during the election was blown out of proportion too.
ReplyDeleteInterestingly enough, here is Hong Kong, there seems to be a flap at the moment over lawmakers who have dual citizenship. Hong Kong's Basic Law doesn't forbid this. Many other countries don't either. Canada supposedly has a few.
But, in the case of Diane Lee, the law is the law....
Arty, how do you know for sure that Ma didn't go through with the complete citizenship process? Did you personally handle his paperwork?
ReplyDeleteArty, how do you know for sure that Ma didn't go through with the complete citizenship process? Did you personally handle his paperwork?
ReplyDeleteNo, but if you ever went though the naturalization process, you will know one thing (the INS actually warns you after you passed the exam and again during the swear in). The moment that you became a US citizen, your green card information is sealed for several years and will be destroyed. So you got to safeguard the citizenship certificate and get a passport as soon as possible. After several years, the only things that could prove your citizenship is the certificate and the passport. In theory, our Federal government is not suppose to keep any information regarding individual hence no national I.D. system, and our SSN is not linked with the citizenship and sometimes not even the name associated with. Although, every time I look at my credit history, I think the credit agencies know more about me than the Fed.
So since DPP find tons of information about Ma's green card. I am pretty sure he is not a US citizen.