Last week's reshuffle of the Chinese Television System's (CTS) board of directors and the appointment of Chiang Hsia (
When the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) was in opposition, it strongly criticized the Chinese Nationalist Party's (KMT) monopoly on media ownership, saying that the media were being used as a government mouthpiece. It therefore advocated the removal of party politics from the media. During the 2000 presidential campaign, Chen invited a group of academics and media figures to draw up a white paper on media reform, laying out plans to make the state-owned media an independent public institution. But after winning the election, the Chen government failed to enact the reforms that were anticipated.
The political reality is this: regardless of how liberal or broad-based a political party might be, it will try to influence public opinion through media appointments.
There is a growing feeling that the government will now not give up control of the media. It appears then that matters must be addressed at a higher level: reform should be sought via the Constitution.
Chen has declared that he will push through
constitutional amendments. So far so good, but the amended Constitution should contain a chapter dedicated to freedom of speech and the media. This would set a standard for the media's interaction with the executive, legislative and judicial branches of government as a recognized Fourth Estate.
There should be articles referring specifically to the creation of an independent media and a National Media Commission that is not subject to the control of any political party. This body would be responsible for integrating and distributing public media resources and monitoring the performance of private media outlets, for drawing up reform proposals and for providing a rational and impartial forum for debate that can improve policy.
This chapter in the Constitution would also cover the disclosure of government-held information and official secrets. Procedures would also be put in place so that the news media can receive legal protection when exercising their right to publish. Constitutional interpretations by the Council of Grand Justices relating to media issues would be incorporated in the amended Constitution to serve as a reference for future judgements in media-related cases.
This country has only just emerged from a period of authoritarian government to become a Western-style democracy, but its laws and administrative structures are far from comprehensive. Although some are doing their best to establish a Fourth Estate, their progress until now has been unsteady.
The amending of the Constitution provides an
opportunity to accelerate this process. Anyone concerned about the management reshuffle within state-run media outlets and the question of what rights the media are entitled to should concentrate on creating a new and comprehensive regulatory mechanism that upholds these rights and protects dissent.
Why is Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) not a “happy camper” these days regarding Taiwan? Taiwanese have not become more “CCP friendly” in response to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) use of spies and graft by the United Front Work Department, intimidation conducted by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the Armed Police/Coast Guard, and endless subversive political warfare measures, including cyber-attacks, economic coercion, and diplomatic isolation. The percentage of Taiwanese that prefer the status quo or prefer moving towards independence continues to rise — 76 percent as of December last year. According to National Chengchi University (NCCU) polling, the Taiwanese
It would be absurd to claim to see a silver lining behind every US President Donald Trump cloud. Those clouds are too many, too dark and too dangerous. All the same, viewed from a domestic political perspective, there is a clear emerging UK upside to Trump’s efforts at crashing the post-Cold War order. It might even get a boost from Thursday’s Washington visit by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. In July last year, when Starmer became prime minister, the Labour Party was rigidly on the defensive about Europe. Brexit was seen as an electorally unstable issue for a party whose priority
US President Donald Trump is systematically dismantling the network of multilateral institutions, organizations and agreements that have helped prevent a third world war for more than 70 years. Yet many governments are twisting themselves into knots trying to downplay his actions, insisting that things are not as they seem and that even if they are, confronting the menace in the White House simply is not an option. Disagreement must be carefully disguised to avoid provoking his wrath. For the British political establishment, the convenient excuse is the need to preserve the UK’s “special relationship” with the US. Following their White House
US President Donald Trump’s return to the White House has brought renewed scrutiny to the Taiwan-US semiconductor relationship with his claim that Taiwan “stole” the US chip business and threats of 100 percent tariffs on foreign-made processors. For Taiwanese and industry leaders, understanding those developments in their full context is crucial while maintaining a clear vision of Taiwan’s role in the global technology ecosystem. The assertion that Taiwan “stole” the US’ semiconductor industry fundamentally misunderstands the evolution of global technology manufacturing. Over the past four decades, Taiwan’s semiconductor industry, led by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), has grown through legitimate means
RSS