Puzzled by Taiwan's Democracy

Dr. Jonathan Lin
Taiwan Foundation for Democracy
No.4, Alley 17, Lane 147, Sec. 3, Sinyi Rd., Taipei 106, Taiwan

cc: Scholars at Risk, etc.

25 December 2011

Dear Dr. Lin,

For nearly two and a half years National Cheng Kung University president, Kao Chiang, defied a Ministry of Education ruling that overturned my illegal dismissal. 

NCKU officials still refuse to remedy, or apologize for, human rights violations. Current president Hwung-Hweng Hwung defiantly whitewashed my illegal dismissal as a "discontinued employment," while his secretariat, Chin-Cheng Chen, repeated false accusations against me as facts (http://news-en.secr.ncku.edu.tw/files/13-1083-78482-1.php; cf. http://rdca45b.blogspot.com/2011/12/4-december-2011-dear-ncku-colleagues-on.html).

Yet the MOE said NCKU "seriously influenced" my "rights" (April 6, 2001), made "improper procedures" (June 14, 2001), and "repeatedly and deviously" interpreted the law (August 17, 2001) (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCDpwd8lE2WN5jzfNAvBIP4GTM_j6jC3yuA4Gq2IbLlxGTsQ_9s6MDqEK596XXZLrnI7cADZW_L5Fa-TC5LVbKzkMRjdIsrkpXSmu-6_WTYyShiY91YQ0_pMc860OoEu3GSD8WntXOLdM/s1600/moeLetters10-726356.JPG). Taiwan's Higher Court ruled the dismissal "was not lawful" (16 January 2007) and Tainan's District Court concluded NCKU "violated the law" and the dismissal was "full of wrongdoings" (7 April 2007). (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXxA5YqRLRetz1pBDey7do5HdnYdxaDyN52qzQgY1EuF3ezBeq7njDsPF__FbzhHrUtjdU6BeFIomZEnt2R5eOS5Yudr4efrAkudYcpOvGkLzK3KJwuY06Z7WGLbRPr_My38GH_6y1FAQ/s1600/courtRulingsUnderlined.JPG.)

Yet no one was punished. The right to sue government officials is legal show without retribution and compensation.

Tainan's prosecutor dismissed my libel complaint against review members on the claim accusations did not circulate outside the university. But all statutes I know say a falsehood is actionable if one other person reads or hears it.

A student who made defamatory accusations was not punished, on the claim her letter did not cause my dismissal. But it was solicited and secretly circulated at university committees for that purpose.

Though the university defiantly violated laws and interrupted my career for four years, courts issued no penalties or punitive and compensatory damages, routine in other democracies. They just told NCKU to reinstate me, like telling a kidnapper to return the child or a robber to return money, with no penalty.

Taiwan inculturates Western values to suit its ways. It permits the right to sue officials, but prevents punishment of those officials. This is "please and tease" politics, giving with one hand and taking with the other.

Showcasing human rights is not the same as enforcing them. No Taiwan rights group has helped me. Yet the case involves human rights issues at all levels of Taiwan society, including judicial equity, media censorship, and academic integrity.

The fact that NCKU officials and committees defy laws and legal rulings with the toleration of faculty undermines confidence in the university's oversight enforcement, thus the integrity of its grading, promotion, and research.

Awarding honorary degrees is meaningless if a university is itself without honor.

Sincerely,

Richard de Canio
Formerly, Associate Professor
Department of Foreign Languages and Literature
National Cheng Kung University
Tainan, Taiwan