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The possible
after-effects of ruling No. 689
By Yu Ying-fu ¤×^¤Ò
According to paragraph two of Article 89 of the Social Order Maintenance Act
(ªÀ·|¯´§ÇºûÅ@ªk), anyone caught following somebody without reasonable cause and who
fails to stop when asked could face a fine of up to NT$3,000 or be reprimanded.
In Constitutional Interpretation No. 689, the Council of Grand Justices recently
ruled that this paragraph is constitutionally sound. As a member of the team
representing the Ministry of the Interior in what has been called a battle
between the right of the individual to privacy and the freedom of the press,
this result is pleasing.
Of the 15 grand justices, 11 expressed an opinion on the interpretation, with
some agreeing with it; some partly agreeing and partly rejecting it; and others
just partly rejecting it. The full text is more than 80,000 words, much longer
than the 10,000-word 1973 verdict by a US federal court on the Galella versus
Onassis appeal between the paparazzi photographer Ronald Galella and Jacqueline
Onassis, former wife of assassinated US president John F. Kennedy.
The grand justices said that when journalists are reporting on a case that can
be determined to be a matter of public interest, and one which concerns the
public and is considered newsworthy, they should be permitted to pursue an
individual with impunity, if said pursuit is deemed necessary to ascertain facts
pertinent to the story, and if the behavior in which the journalist engages does
not violate norms of acceptable social behavior.
Examples of such cases include reporting crimes or misconduct; issues concerning
public health and safety; the governance of the country; the official duties and
implementation of policy by civil servants; matters of trust involving
politicians and their conduct; and the behavior of figures in the public eye
which could have an impact on society. Essentially, this points out under which
circumstances a journalist can follow the subject of their story without fear of
being persecuted under the Social Order Maintenance Act.
The grand justices also said that the guarantee of press freedoms refers to the
freedom to elicit information and is not restricted to journalists working for
media agencies, in that it also extends to private individuals providing
newsworthy information to the public, or any behavior involving seeking
information that will promote public debate through the monitoring of the
government. This means that a journalist does not necessarily need to be
affiliated with any particular media group and that they could be members of the
public or freelance journalists.
Taiwan will soon hold presidential and legislative elections. Considering the
continued ubiquity of corruption and vote-buying, something particularly
virulent in remote and poor areas, it makes sense to encourage unaffiliated or
freelance journalists and, if necessary, organizing teams to search out, closely
pursue and catch vote buyers. This will create an environment which will make
candidates who are toying with the idea of vote buying to think again.
Yu Ying-fu is a lawyer.
Translated by Paul Cooper
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