As Taiwan’s #MeToo movement continues, more accusations of sexual harassment have been made against people in the fields of academia, politics and entertainment.
In response to accusations made against National Taiwan Normal University’s (NTNU) Department of Graphic Arts and Communications associate professor Chiu Yu-ping (邱于平), the university yesterday said it received new evidence and has relaunched an investigation, while a gender equity committee meeting would be held this month.
Chiu was accused of rubbing the neck, shoulders, lower stomach and hips of female students in his office, as well as putting his hand inside their clothes to touch their bra straps.
Photo: Yang Mien-chieh, Taipei Times
This led to one of the students being afraid of walking to the department building alone, and seeking psychiatric help and anxiety medication, the university said.
The case was reported to NTNU’s gender equity committee on Dec. 2 last year, and an official application for an investigation was filed on Dec. 19 last year.
One of the students said that after the university’s first investigation, it in April recommended that the department suspend Chiu from teaching required courses and his position as a mentor teacher.
However, he was still allowed to teach elective courses this semester, which could have led to more assault cases, she said, adding that students petitioned for a reinvestigation.
NTNU said it would carefully look into the claims, according to the principle of the presumption of innocence until proven guilty, but not letting the guilty off the hook, to ensure students have a safe learning environment on campus.
Meanwhile, several female students launched an online page for alleged victims of former National Taiwan University (NTU) sociology assistant professor Lee Ming-tsung (李明璁) to gather, as they accused him of having romantic relations with students.
The NTU Department of Sociology yesterday said it had reported the claims to the university’s gender equity committee.
Lee wrote on Facebook that he had not used his position of power as a professor to form imbalanced relationships, but due to public concerns, he would resign from his teaching duties.
Separately, a woman who said she worked in Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Lai Hsiang-ling’s (賴香伶) office on Saturday wrote on Facebook that TPP Legislator Chiu Chen-yuan (邱臣遠) had sexually harassed her.
Chiu “placed his hand on my left hand, which was on my thigh,” she said.
Lai was present at the time, but did not stop him or deal with his behavior, she said.
Chiu responded on Facebook yesterday, saying that he does not know the woman, and that he has always abided by principles of workplace gender equality and never stepped over the line.
He said he would reserve the right to take legal action for alleged defamation.
Lin wrote on Facebook yesterday that the woman seemed to be a Social Democratic Party member, and that her sexual harassment allegation was a smear campaign against the TPP.
A lawyer yesterday said that if the woman is a victim of sexual harassment, that Lai revealed her identity could be considered a contravention of the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act (性騷擾防治法).
Also yesterday, actor Chris Wang (宥勝) apologized on Facebook after two members of staff accused him of having sexually harassed them, including licking ears, taking off their bras, embracing them and rubbing their chests.
Additional reporting by Lee Shao-ling
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
RSS