An accusation of sexual harassment led to the resignation of a top Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) official, while President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) has called for a thorough investigation into the incident involving a contractor.
Vice President and DPP Chairman William Lai (賴清德) yesterday said he approved the resignation of DPP deputy secretary-general Hsu Chia-tien (許嘉恬), who headed the party’s Women’s Development Department when the alleged incident happened in September last year.
“Gender equality is among our party’s core values, that we have strived for and advanced along with Taiwanese society,” Lai said. “The DPP did not handle it appropriately at the time, causing more pain for the victim... I apologize to the victim and to society.”
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
After learning about the incident, Lai said he instructed DPP Secretary-General Hsu Li-ming (許立明) to ensure the party undertakes an “open and transparent” investigation, upholding the “zero tolerance” principle.
“We must assess our party’s internal mechanism for filing complaints and reporting rights violations to office superiors. If there is negligence and deficiencies, then we must admit wrongdoing and rectify the problems. We must fully protect the safety of all party members while on duty,” he said.
On Wednesday, a former female staffer at the department wrote online that when filming a video with a contracted media company in September last year, the director made sexual advances and groped her while seated inside a vehicle as the crew returned to Taipei after shooting on location.
She alleged that the male director caressed her on the neck, then groped her chest and shoulder area.
As she was tired after a long day of work, she said that at first she was confused, but she became fearful, adding that he made further sexual advances when they returned to the studio.
After returning, she informed her colleague of the incident and reported it to their office superior Hsu Chia-tien, she said.
Hsu Chia-tien treated her coldly and asked why she did not jump out of the vehicle or scream, the woman said.
The response was negligent and an attempt to sweep the alleged sexual harassment under the rug, critics said.
DPP spokespeople at a news conference yesterday issued a public apology for Hsu Chia-tien’s inappropriate handling of the matter.
An investigation would be conducted and all projects with the video production team would be terminated, they said.
Meanwhile, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) berated Lai, who is the DPP’s presidential candidate.
“Lai did not face this matter directly, and he must take responsibility and explain to the public how the DPP handled the aftermath of the incident,” he said.
New Taipei City Mayor and KMT presidential candidate Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said that Lai helped cover up the incident, and demanded a public explanation.
“Why did the DPP conceal this case for so long, and through these months, has Lai paid any attention to it?” he asked. “This case concerns Hsu Chia-tien, who covered it up. Did Lai promote her to DPP deputy secretary-general? Does the perpetrator have links with DPP officials?”
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫), spokeswoman Yang Chih-yu (楊智伃) and Legislator Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介) would be summoned by police for questioning for leading an illegal assembly on Thursday evening last week, Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) said today. The three KMT officials led an assembly outside the Taipei City Prosecutors’ Office, a restricted area where public assembly is not allowed, protesting the questioning of several KMT staff and searches of KMT headquarters and offices in a recall petition forgery case. Chu, Yang and Hsieh are all suspected of contravening the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法) by holding
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
Taiwan would welcome the return of Honduras as a diplomatic ally if its next president decides to make such a move, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said yesterday. “Of course, we would welcome Honduras if they want to restore diplomatic ties with Taiwan after their elections,” Lin said at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, when asked to comment on statements made by two of the three Honduran presidential candidates during the presidential campaign in the Central American country. Taiwan is paying close attention to the region as a whole in the wake of a
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS