Taiwanese should be confident in their legal system’s political neutrality, but non-governmental organizations (NGOs) must be vigorous in holding the government accountable, Jerome Cohen, President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) Harvard law professor, said yesterday in Taipei.
Cohen, now a New York University law professor and a senior fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations, expressed confidence that most of the prosecutors and judges in Taiwan are objective and neutral.
“Since the early 1990s, Taiwan, by and large, has developed neutrality of prosecutors and judges. I have met prosecutors, lawyers, law professors [on this visit] and I have a pretty good feeling about it,” he said.
In a Nov. 13 op-ed piece, “Ties that blind,” in the South China Morning Post, Cohen said some critics complained about the arrests and incommunicado detentions of former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government officials, including former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
He said the investigation into Chen’s financial dealings began in 2006 while he was in office and continued after he stepped down.
“For two-and-a-half years they have been investigating Chen. This is not something they just heard about. Now [the prosecutors] tell the court they need to lock him up to prevent him from talking to other people. But he has been talking to other people for two-and-a-half years,” Cohen said.
“Without knowing more, the face of it raises real questions,” he said.
However, the majority of those in Taiwan’s judicial system strive to remain impartial, he said, urging the public to refrain from judging the system until the case is over.
Cohen met Ma yesterday and suggested an independent, impartial commission be set up to probe the legitimacy of the detentions and the reports of police brutality during last month’s protests against the visit of Association for Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林).
Ma thought such a commission unnecessary because that would be the task of the Control Yuan, Cohen said.
"Sure, let’s give the Control Yuan a chance. But I want to see it act effectively. At the same time, a commission comprised of NGOs should also be set up [to probe the matter],” he said, naming the Judicial Reform Foundation as a perfect candidate for the commission.
More than 100 people, including police and protesters, were injured during last month’s protests.
Stating that some of the police violence was provoked by the protesters, Cohen chided DPP Chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) for not controlling her demonstrators.
“I understand the anxiety of the demonstrators because these are matters of the gravest importance to the Taiwanese people … but when you do demonstrate, the people under your leadership need to show discipline,” he said.
Critics of the Ma administration have said the violence represented an erosion of human rights and that the White Terror of the old KMT regime is returning, but Cohen dismissed those claims.
He said such rhetoric was “hyperbole” and “sheer accumulated hatred.”
“I come from a background of lifelong study of mainland China and the situation here is really good. I know something about the White Terror and the 228 Incident and this is no return to the White Terror,” he said.
Cohen also agreed with Ma that now was not the right time for the Dalai Lama to visit Taiwan, saying the political cost of such a visit on cross-strait relations would far exceed its benefit.
“It is a tough call, but I understand what is at stake here. We are at a very tentative crucial stage of possible limited reconciliation with the mainland and progress will be very slow from now on. I don’t see a reason to rush the Dalai Lama to come here because people already know him and his position. It would be nice, but I think too much is at stake here,” he said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS