TAIWAN: TAIPEI: NATIONAL SECURITY BUREAU SHOWS OFF BODYGUARDS

(2 Feb 1996) Mandarin/Nat Taiwan's National Security Bureau, once an arm of authoritarian rule, has unveiled part of its new democratic look. It has proudly put on display the bodyguards who will protect the island's candidates for its inaugural election. But some still have their doubts about the Bureau - remembering days when it was better known for arresting politicians - instead of protecting them. These crack agents have been assigned to protect the four sets of presidential and vice presidential candidates. They are the elite members of the National Security Bureau's (N-S-B) Special Service Command Centre and are responsible for their day to day safety until polling day on March 24. Until the lifting of martial law in 1987, opposition parties were banned by the ruling Nationalist Party. During this time, the N-S-B earned a reputation for spying on anyone who was deemed to be an `enemy' of the government. Some oppo