Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday removed Atomic Energy Council minister Hsieh Shou-shing (謝曉星) from his post, effective immediately, citing accusations of harassment and abuse of office, which have “impugned the government’s credibility and fostered an unfriendly and sexist working environment.”
Su said Hsieh’s actions contravene the government’s policy to foster gender equality.
Hsieh’s dismissal came after the Chinese-language Mirror Media last year reported that Hsieh allegedly sexually harassed his female subordinates.
Photo: CNA
Su at the time instructed Executive Yuan Secretary-General Lee Meng-yen (李孟諺) to put together a task force to investigate the issue.
Following a three-month investigation, the task force on Monday said its findings have substantiated the magazine’s allegations that Hsieh’s actions contravened articles 7 and 12 of the Act of Gender Equality in Employment (性別工作平等法).
Hsieh has demonstrated bias in the appointment of his secretaries and other government employees, as well as when approving leave requests, the task force said.
He was fixated on qualifiers such as height, age, looks, blood type, zodiac signs, marital status and family wealth that did not relate to an employee’s professional capabilities, it said.
Hsieh has been known to stare at his female subordinates and have bodily contact with them, the task force said, adding that he also talked about their figures, makeup and clothing.
The task force said that such actions are unbecoming of the head of a ministerial-level agency.
Hsieh tendered his resignation upon learning of the task force’s findings, but he had already been dismissed.
The Executive Yuan apologized to those affected on the government’s behalf, and said it would forward the case to the Control Yuan for further investigation.
The Thai government on Friday announced that Taiwanese would be allowed to stay in the country for up to 60 days per entry, under the Southeast Asian country’s visa-free program starting from today. Taiwan is among 93 countries included in the Thai visa-waiver program, which has been expanded from 57 countries, with the visa-exempt entry extended from 30 to 60 days. After taking office last year, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has vowed to grant more visa waivers to foreign travelers as part of efforts to stimulate tourism. The expanded visa-waiver program was on Friday signed by Thai Minister of the Interior Anutin
CHIPS AND DEFENSE: Trump said the US had lost its chip business and Taipei should pay it for defense, and added that ‘we’re no different than an insurance company’ Taiwan-US relations are solid, and both sides are in agreement that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and the Indo-Pacific region are everyone’s concern, Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) said yesterday following comments by former US president Donald Trump that Taiwan “should pay” for US defense. Taiwan is thankful to the US for supporting Taiwan’s bid to participate in international organizations, Cho told a news conference in Taipei. “I know the people very well, respect them greatly. They did take about 100 percent of our chip business,” Trump told Bloomberg on June 25 in an interview that was published on Tuesday. “I think
SECURITY CONCERNS: An FBI agent said it was surprising that the shooter, whose motive remains unknown, was able to open fire before the Secret Service killed him On the heels of an apparent attempt to kill him, former US president Donald Trump yesterday called for unity and resilience as shocked leaders across the political divide recoiled from the shooting that left him injured, but “fine,” and the shooter and a rally-goer dead. The presumptive Republican presidential nominee said the upper part of his right ear was pierced in the shooting His aides said he was in “great spirits” and doing well. “I knew immediately that something was wrong in that I heard a whizzing sound, shots, and immediately felt the bullet ripping through the skin. Much bleeding took place,” he
FRONTLINE DEFENDERS: While air defense forces were placed on alert, Lai visited the navy’s 131st Fleet in Keelung, calling it a vital pillar in the nation’s defense The Ministry of National Defense yesterday said it was monitoring “waves” of missile tests in China’s Inner Mongolia and that its air defense forces were on alert. From 4am yesterday, the ministry detected “multiple waves of test launches” by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Rocket Force in Inner Mongolia, about 2,000km from Taiwan, it said. The military are continuously monitoring developments and the air defense forces are on alert, the ministry said, without giving details. The Chinese Ministry of National Defense did not answer calls seeking comment outside of office hours. The Rocket Force is in charge of China’s conventional and nuclear