Letter to Taipei Times

-------- Original Message -------- Subject: LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Date: Mon, 19 Sep 2005 09:16:35 +0800
Organization: NCKU
To: letters@taipeitimes.com


TAIPEI TIMES
19 September 2005

cc: Scholars at Risk, Professor Ray Dah-tong, Professor Paul Chow

Dear TAIPEI TIMES,

As you may know, NATIONAL CHENG KUNG UNIVERSITY has been in violation of laws and human rights for many years now.
In 1999, officials held secret meetings and used secret letters to effect my dismissal. In 2001, the university president, KAO CHIANG, refused to comply with a legal Ministry of Education ruling for more than two years. Only outside pressure forced his compliance.
As of recently, university officials still pretend to "hold meetings" on issues settled in a Ministry ruling of January, 2001. The university has still not apologized, nor issued back increments. I received back pay only under court order that allowed my bank access to the university bank account.
There are issues involved in this case a democratic press should consider:
1. There must be legal principles. No university president should be allowed, without penalty or dismissal, to defy a legal ruling.
2. If the Ministry of Education allows officials to ignore or delay its rulings, it denies justice and invites more abuses. If faculty know the Ministry cannot insure rights, professors will likely give in to peer pressure in grading, research, etc. This happened during the SARS crisis. Apart from health risks, this caused international problems for Taiwan.
3. If a university can defy the law, there is no reason to trust it acts honorably in other areas, such as grading, research, etc. It also weakens trust in government.
4. International exposure of this case will undermine belief in Taiwan's commitment to human rights. Legal violations in themselves are not the main issue (they occur elsewhere too). Indifference to these violations is more serious.
I understand there is misconduct here as elsewhere. What I cannot understand is faculty and media indifference to such misconduct. That's not a sign of a committed democracy.
5. A case like this, against a Taiwan professor or student in America, would be quickly exposed by the media, insuring quick remedy. The certainty of exposure would prevent it happening in the first place.
A scandal at a university in Hong Kong was headline news (I was in Hong Kong at the time). This resulted in real changes in administration, including resignations.
Our university officials defy laws because they don't fear consequences or exposure. They have nothing to lose. They're neither fired nor demoted, regardless of misconduct. This breeds arrogance among university officials and fear among faculty. That's no way to advance democracy.
6. What's troubling about this case is refusal to admit wrongdoing or to reform. Officials repeat their misconduct even as they're advised of past mistakes.
Committees are indifferent to Ministry rulings and legal principles. To support colleagues, they rubberstamp past abuses.
This not only costs taxpayers money and appellants time. It shows committees are not qualified to advance education and research.
7. Consider rights of Taiwan citizens too: A student, surnamed Chen, wrote a secret letter saying she failed my course unfairly eight years before. Shortly before or after she wrote her letter, she was hired as a part-time instructor and admitted to our doctoral program.
University admission or employment should be based on merit, not deceit. Children of tax-paying parents have the right to equal opportunity at our university.
Thomas Jefferson viewed the press as the main branch of government. Laws cannot advance the interests of society the way the press can when it exposes disrespect for laws.
Social rights we uphold today benefit all of us tomorrow. The press has a moral obligation to insure those rights.

Sincerely,

Richard de Canio
Department of Foreign Languages and Literature
National Cheng Kung University
Tainan, Taiwan
(06) 237 8626