11.   German authorities denied they instigated the smuggling of bomb-quality plutonium from Russia last year and said Monday they would investigate who leaked documents suggesting official wrongdoing.

12.   President Kim Dae-jung responded by ordering prosecutors to investigate alleged official wrongdoing in connection with the economic crisis.

13.   The case has attracted great interest as a test of impartial justice in this one-party nation, where cover-ups of official wrongdoing are not uncommon.

14.   The two were barred from leaving the country last week, when prosecutors launched an investigation into official wrongdoing.

15.   Trials against public officials are rare in Vietnam, and people are used to official wrongdoing being covered up.