Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) yesterday said the government has a “zero tolerance” policy for sexual exploitation, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) said it would never again work with entertainer Mickey Huang (黃子佼) after he was accused of sexual harassment.
Huang was investigated by prosecutors in June last year on suspicion of sexual harassment and taking nude photographs of a minor, but the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office on Wednesday said he would not be prosecuted due to a lack of evidence.
During the investigation, Huang was found to be in possession of seven sex videos featuring a minor, purchased from an illegal online sex video platform, but he was granted deferred prosecution for two years, and ordered to pay a fine of NT$1.2 million (US$37,389) and write a letter of repentance.
Photo: Taipei Times file
The prosecutors’ decision sparked a public outcry, including from model-turned-actress Sonia Sui (隋棠), who on Friday announced that she would no longer work with Huang, because he had purchased videos from an illegal platform that hosts many illegal and non-consensual sex videos, including of children.
The MOHW’s Department of Protective Services late on Saturday night issued a statement saying that as the prosecutors’ investigation had confirmed Huang’s breach of the Child and Youth Sexual Exploitation Prevention Act (兒童及少年性剝削防制條例), it had zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and would never work with Huang again.
Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Lee Li-feng (李麗芬) on Sunday said the ministry has zero tolerance for sexual exploitation, and that in addition to never working with Huang again, it would also remove all previous policy promotion videos with him in them.
Chen yesterday said the government has a “zero tolerance” policy against harassment and sexual exploitation, and “absolute zero tolerance” for sexual exploitation.
He said the Gender Equity Education Act (性別平等教育法), the Gender Equality in Employment Act (性別平等工作法) and the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act (性騷擾防治法) were amended last year, and the reporting mechanism was strengthened, while relevant law enforcement amendments were made across ministries, which took effect this year.
According to the law, if online platforms do not remove non-consensual sex images after being notified, they can face a fine of between NT$60,000 and NT$600,000, or the Web site may be blocked if it is in another country.
Schools would also enhance gender equality education and empower young students to say no to sexual coercion, he added.
Separately, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wang Shih-cheng (王世堅) yesterday said Huang’s behavior was “heinous and outrageous,” and that he would propose an amendment to the Child and Youth Sexual Exploitation Prevention Act, so that people like Huang who purchase porn featuring a minor would face three to five years in prison.
If offenders are charged with imprisonment of three years or more, they would not be granted deferred prosecution, he said, adding that sexual harassment should be an indictable offence, instead of the current state in which there is no trial without complaint.
Additional reporting by Hsieh Chun-lin and CNA
‘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
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
Myanmar has turned down an offer of assistance from Taiwanese search-and-rescue teams after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the nation on Friday last week, saying other international aid is sufficient, the National Fire Agency said yesterday. More than 1,700 have been killed and 3,400 injured in the quake that struck near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay early on Friday afternoon, followed minutes later by a magnitude 6.7 aftershock. Worldwide, 13 international search-and-rescue teams have been deployed, with another 13 teams mobilizing, the agency said. Taiwan’s search-and-rescue teams were on standby, but have since been told to stand down, as
RSS