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Opponents lambaste PTS’ reshuffle
BLUE-HUED HAND:The opposition and media watchdog groups
criticized Sylvia Feng’s replacement as PTS chair with an ardent KMT supporter
as a political ploy
By Vincent Y. Chao / Staff Reporter
Critics yesterday decried the dismissal of former Public Television Service
Foundation president and chief executive Sylvia Feng (馮賢賢), calling it the
latest example of political maneuvering in the long-running dispute over the
embattled public broadcaster
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and media watchdog organizations
yesterday expressed concern about the shake-up after Feng and her deputy were
dismissed by the Public Television Service’s (PTS) board last month.
Ming Hwa Yuan Taiwanese Opera director Chen Sheng-fu (陳勝福), a strong Chinese
Nationalist Party (KMT) supporter, has been officially sworn in as acting
chairman.
“We would like to express our solidarity with Sylvia Feng in her defense of PTS’
independence,” Reporters Sans Frontieres Asia director Vincent Brossel wrote in
a statement. “It is disturbing to see a power struggle at the head of PTS being
won by the ruling party’s supporters.”
Problems began for the nation’s first public broadcaster in June last year after
the legislature passed an amendment to the Public Television Act (公共電視法)
enlarging the PTS’ board of directors. The Government Information Office (GIO),
which funds PTS, immediately appointed eight new directors.
The decision paralyzed day-to-day operations at the broadcaster after the
Control Yuan wrote that there were major flaws in procedures surrounding the
appointments. In January, an injunction was granted by the Taipei District Court
to prevent the new directors from taking office.
Three months later, the GIO filed a lawsuit against six of the 11 remaining
directors, accusing them of illegally holding meetings without the necessary
two-thirds’ attendance. In a counter suit, the group said they were legally
mandated to hold meetings once a month to continue PTS operations.
In its annual report on press freedom earlier this year, in which Taiwan dropped
four places from last year, US-based Freedom House highlighted the PTS dispute
as a reason behind the downgrading. Taiwan ranked No. 47 in April, a 14-place
drop from 2008.
In an online statement on Monday, Freedom House raised questions as to whether
the leadership change had political implications, coming just two months before
the special municipality elections. Candidates in the elections are expected to
participate in a debate organized by PTS prior to the polls.
“It is our hope that the recent steps are not a reflection of PTS succumbing to
the polemical character of much of today’s media in Taiwan,” Freedom House’s
director of studies Christopher Walker said in the statement. “We encourage
Taiwan’s policymakers to ensure that PTS does not become a casualty of political
conflict.”
Feng said she might take legal action against the new acting chairperson and has
characterized her dismissal as politically motivated.
Under Feng, PTS refused to provide extensive coverage broadcast the Taipei
International Flora Expo that opens in November, despite having shown last
year’s World Games in Kaohsiung live.
The flora expo is a critical component of Taipei City Mayor Hau Lung-bin’s (郝龍斌)
re-election bid.
Feng said the two decisions were unrelated and that media organizations should
be free to choose which events they covered without government interference.
Her position has been supported by the DPP, which said yesterday that her firing
would affect the independence of the broadcaster.
“The removal of these professionals shows the danger that public media companies
face under this government,” DPP spokesperson Tsai Chi-chang (蔡其昌) said. “The
political involvement is quite evident in this case.”
PTS claims the firings were made as a result of poor performance, citing a
recent internal poll that showed 83 percent of PTS employees had cast
no-confidence votes against Feng.
Feng’s contract was scheduled to end in December.
Meanwhile, Chen has pledged to step down after finishing Feng’s term and said he
would not be paid for the three-month-long job.
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