Lai’s #MeToo pledge
Taiwan’s #MeToo movement continues to grow not only in the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), but also in the media, and the academic and entertainment worlds. Sexual harassment is not just the business of one party. It results from a power imbalance and traditional patriarchal mindset, resulting in an entrenched situation where the victim holds back, while the offender goes unpunished.
Although laws are in place, they are ineffective in preventing sexual harassment. This allows offenders to act with no fear, rationalizing their behavior by thinking that victims “might not recall it tomorrow anyway.”
As the DPP has long advocated democratic and progressive values, as well as gender equality, such scandals will undoubtedly cause greater damage to its values and image. Vice President and DPP Chairman William Lai (賴清德) immediately apologized, pledging “zero tolerance” for sexual harassment and saying the party should not take the “big picture” of the presidential campaign into consideration when handling the issue. His attitude was highly commendable.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) proposed three major reform directions: improving gender equality awareness, reviewing the sexual harassment reporting mechanism and demanding that the Legislative Yuan prioritize related amendments to the law during the next legislative session.
It has been said that “it is not too late to mend the fold after a sheep is lost.” Sexual harassment victims continue to exist in all walks of life. The string of revelations shows the public expects much of Lai, and their desire for fairness and justice.
Victims who choose to no longer tolerate this might be unable to seek a conviction after the statute of limitations expires.
However, they still identify offenders bravely, hoping that there will not be yet another victim. Many sexual harassment perpetrators are repeat offenders, who take advantage of victims too afraid to speak up. This is why media personality Lucifer Chu (朱學恒) dared to tell his alledged victim that “you will not remember it tomorrow anyway.”
Although the situation is disheartening, it is also an opportunity for the country to move toward gender equality. When people with wandering hands, regardless of political stripe or occupation, win applause at high posts at the same time as distorting social fairness and justice, it makes a mockery of a democratic society based on the rule of law.
If Lai can reform traditional bureaucrats’ ignorance of sexual harassment cases or officials’ old habit of covering up for one another, and if the DPP can start to achieve “zero tolerance” of such cases internally, this is exactly the “big picture” that people expect, and the “big picture” for democracy and progress in Taiwan.
Kuo Han-lin
Taipei
Ignoring sexual harassment
The public knows that the #MeToo movement now sweeping through the political world reflects an issue with deep societal roots that could affect anyone regardless of political affiliation, occupation or race. As the problem has been long tolerated, it has festered and become systemic. When “problems” start to manifest in the system, members of different groups within society, regardless of gender, age or social class, try to gloss over them.
All too often, direct supervisors take a passive approach. When they ask victims: “What would you like me to do?” what they are saying is: “What can I do so that you will stop bothering me?”
Another approach is to “lecture” the victims by pressing them to think of the “bigger picture” or the “greater good.” By so doing they are complicit in maintaining the system and ignoring problems.
Some even feel it appropriate to blame the victims, making remarks such as: “Why did you wear such a short skirt?” or “You only have yourself to blame for others’ behavior if you dress like that.”
My child is enrolled in an elementary school in New Taipei City. In March, they were involved in a bullying incident and were forced to endure the teacher’s relentless interrogations and accusations.
We went to the Office of Student Affairs and the principal, but they failed to report the incident to the New Taipei City Education Bureau within 24 hours and even tried to smooth things over by asking the parents to settle the matter privately. This is a typical example of a systemic problem. The school should have investigated the incident.
However, perhaps for fear of having to write reports or having the report affect the schools’ performance appraisal, similar incidents are often ignored in this system. If society refuses to tackle a problem at its root, how can similar incidents be prevented?
Do not think that sexual harassment or bullying would never happen to or around you. Similar incidents of a grander scale have occurred in the army before, and more could be happening at workplaces or elsewhere. Complicity and indifference caused them all. As indifference leads to indulgence, many Harvey Weinsteins out there are walking free and still perpetrate despicable acts: Why else would someone such as Internet celebrity Lucifer Chu (朱學恆) dare to forcibly hug and kiss Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei City Councilor Chung Pei-chun (鍾沛君) in front of witnesses at a dinner?
Lan Po-chang
New Taipei City
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