Taiwan ex-president sentenced to 20 years for graft

Taiwan's high court on Friday reduced the life sentence of former president Chen Shui-bian, a fiery advocate of the island's independence from China, to 20 years on graft and money-laundering charges, local TV reported.

Taiwan's high court on Friday reduced the life sentence of former president Chen Shui-bian, a fiery advocate of the island's independence from China, to 20 years on graft and money-laundering charges, local TV reported.

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The ruling in Taiwan's first criminal case against a former president scales back a lower court conviction last year on counts involving about $20 million that prosecutors say was illegally taken by Chen and his wife.

Chen, in jail since late 2008 pending trial, rejected the charges and called them politically motivated, his private foundation said, adding that he would appeal again to the Supreme Court, his last chance to overturn the verdict.

The ruling against Chen could affect support for the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which backed the former president when he was in office from 2000 to 2008.