For years, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government has trumpeted the idea of transitional justice, but it has been hesitant to take the message to the judicial arena for fear of being accused of "political interference.
In light of Tuesday's verdict in the corruption trial of former Taipei mayor Ma Ying-jeou (
Judicial independence means that the judiciary is free of interference from any administrative or legislative agencies. It does not mean that the judiciary is exempt from scrutiny or criticism. How can Taiwan progress if our less-than-professional judges cannot be criticized or scrutinized?
During his visit last month, former East German prime minister Lothar de Maiziere discussed how a reunified Germany has dealt with the issue of transitional justice.
After reunification, the Bonn government set up an independent organization to supervise the process. Aside from clearing the names and restoring the reputation of people who were once "blacklisted" by the East German communist regime, Bonn also publicized a list of former informers who then lost the right to serve in government. It required all political parties and their affiliated organizations to put their assets under the trust of an independent commission formed by the prime minister.
De Maiziere also said that 50 percent of the former communist regime's judges were considered unfit for their jobs and were relieved of their duties. If Germany can do this, why can't Taiwan?
It has been 20 years since martial law was lifted in Taiwan. However, a "martial-law" mindset still exists in many areas of the bureaucracy, including the judicial system.
Many in the judiciary attained their current positions as judges or prosecutors after passing countless national examinations. While their efforts and professionalism should be recognized and respected, it is still worth discussing how much of the former Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) administration's party-state mindset still holds sway over these judicial elite who had to memorize and parrot the former regime's party-state ideas in order to pass the tests needed to advance their careers.
To mark the 20th anniversary of the lifting of martial law, the government staged a series of commemorative events, in addition to think tanks holding forums on transitional justice and inviting experts from Hungary, Lithuania and Germany to share their experiences.
However, other than drafting a statute on the disposition of assets improperly obtained by political parties (
It has failed not only to propose bills to clear the names of those once blacklisted by the former KMT regime, but has also failed to propose a plan to bring former informers and "students spies" to justice, let alone overhauling the judicial system.
Whether the DPP administration's lack of action in implementing transitional justice will cost it the presidency next year is not important. What is important is that its lack of action in this regard has hampered Taiwan's path to becoming a healthy democratic country.
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
US President Trump weighed into the state of America’s semiconductor manufacturing when he declared, “They [Taiwan] stole it from us. They took it from us, and I don’t blame them. I give them credit.” At a prior White House event President Trump hosted TSMC chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家), head of the world’s largest and most advanced chip manufacturer, to announce a commitment to invest US$100 billion in America. The president then shifted his previously critical rhetoric on Taiwan and put off tariffs on its chips. Now we learn that the Trump Administration is conducting a “trade investigation” on semiconductors which
By now, most of Taiwan has heard Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an’s (蔣萬安) threats to initiate a vote of no confidence against the Cabinet. His rationale is that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)-led government’s investigation into alleged signature forgery in the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) recall campaign constitutes “political persecution.” I sincerely hope he goes through with it. The opposition currently holds a majority in the Legislative Yuan, so the initiation of a no-confidence motion and its passage should be entirely within reach. If Chiang truly believes that the government is overreaching, abusing its power and targeting political opponents — then
RSS