Dalai Lama expenses furor brews
　

PUBLIC PETITION: The Ministry of the Interior denied that inquiries sent to the local government that invited the Dalai Lama to visit Taiwan were politically motivated
　

By Loa Iok-sin
STAFF REPORTER
Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 1

“The Dalai Lama wouldn’t even let me pay for his lunch when we stopped for a lunch break in Jiasian Township.”— Yang Chiu-hsing, Kaohsiung County commissioner

The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) yesterday denied allegations by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the media that its request for details of any government money spent on the Dalai Lama’s visit to Taiwan by local governments was politically motivated.

“As the government authority in charge of religious affairs, we received a request from the Control Yuan to see if government money was spent by the seven local governments that invited the Dalai Lama to cover his expenses,” Civil Affairs Department Director Huang Li-hsin (黃麗馨) told the Taipei Times by telephone yesterday. “The Control Yuan made the request because they received a public petition asking if government money was spent to cover the expenses of the Dalai Lama’s visit and whether this was in violation of the separation of religion and state clause in the Constitution.”

Last month, Yunlin, Chiayi, Tainan County, Kaohsiung and Pingtung counties and Tainan and Kaohsiung cities jointly issued an invitation to the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, asking him to visit Taiwan to hold religious services for those who lost their lives and to comfort the victims of Typhoon Morakot.

Upon receiving the request from the Control Yuan, the MOI sent inquiries to the local governments on Tuesday, a move that riled DPP lawmakers — such as Tainan City’s William Lai (賴清德) and Kaohsiung City’s Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) — who questioned whether it was a retaliatory measure because China had voiced opposition to the visit.

Huang denied the allegation and said both the Control Yuan’s request and the ministry’s inquiries to local governments were part of standard procedure when handling a public petition. Huang said there was no political motive behind it.

So far, Kaohsiung and Tainan counties have replied and said the expenses were covered by the Tibet Religious Foundation of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the de facto representative office of the Tibetan government in exile in Taiwan.

“The Dalai Lama wouldn’t even let me pay for his lunch when we stopped for a lunch break in Jiasian Township (甲仙)” after visiting the disaster-torn Siaolin Village (小林), Kaohsiung County Commissioner Yang Chiu-hsing (楊秋興) said.

“Not a cent of the expenses for the Dalai Lama’s visit came out of the Kaohsiung City treasury,” Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) said.

Sonam Dorjee, secretary-general of the Tibetan representative office, confirmed that the office had covered the monk’s expenses.

Huang said she did not think it would have been a problem if the local governments had covered the expenses.

“Separation of religion and state as stipulated in the Constitution means that the government is responsible of protecting everyone’s freedom of religion and should refrain from interfering in religion,” Huang said. “Government agencies sponsor religious events on a regular basis, so I don’t see a problem with it.”

That explanation, however, did not convince Taiwan Friends of Tibet chairwoman Chow Mei-li (周美里), who believes the probe should not have started in the first place.

“As the government authority in charge of religious affairs, the MOI should have told the Control Yuan there was no problem, instead of sending inquiries to the local governments,” Chow said.

Chow said she would file similar petitions to question the Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission’s sponsoring of a Tibetan Buddhist service to commemorate the typhoon victims at the end of last month and whether President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) had violated the separation of religion and state by taking part in several religious services for typhoon victims.

‘Miracle’ brothers forever changed by 921
　

By Mo Yan-chih
STAFF REPORTER
Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 3
　

Ten years ago, when Sun Chi-kuang (孫啟光) walked out from the wreckage of the Tunghsing building in Taipei after his older brother, Sun Chi-fong (孫啟峰), was lifted out of the rubble six days after the 921 Earthquake, loud cheers erupted from relatives and rescue workers and a new sense of hope emerged.

The Tunghsiung building was the only structure in Taipei City to be completely destroyed by the quake. Eighty-seven people were killed, 105 injured and more than 250 left homeless in the collapse.

During the six days before the younger Sun, who was 19 years of age at that time, dug a tunnel behind a smashed refrigerator and crawled out of the rubble, the two brothers stayed alive by eating rotten apples and drinking stale water and their own urine. In the darkness, they called out each other’s name to confirm their existence and Sun Chi-fong had his 24th birthday celebration under the ruins.

For many, the morning the younger Sun walked out and yelled “My name is Sun Chi-kuang, a survivor!” was a miracle. For the two brothers, the fear and trauma left by the quake is still alive today.
　

Ever since the earthquake, the two Suns always place a bottle of water and flashlight at their bedside and always have the light on before going to sleep.

“Ten years on, I am still afraid of earthquakes,” Sun Chi-kuang said.

The older Sun said memories of the quake and the following six days are still vivid. He and his brother were playing poker when the quake hit their home. They dove under a table, which shielded them from falling debris.

Relatives of the Suns, including the entire family of their aunt, who lived on the fourth floor of the building, did not survive the quake.

As survivors whose miraculous story was broadcast throughout the country, for a long time the two brothers lived with a sense of guilt and enormous pressure as they tried not to fall short of public expectations.

“We’ve been trying to live our lives ... and learned that the best way to repay the kindness and help from those who saved us is to live in the moment,” Sun Chi-fong said while attending a memorial concert organized by Taipei City’s Fire Department in Da-an Park on Saturday.

The older Sun, who is now a computer engineer, would normally celebrate his 35th birthday tomorrow. However, he holds his birthday celebration on Sept. 21 instead.

“I still think about the quake and to me, Sept. 21 is my birthday because me and my brother were reborn on that day” he said.

The two brothers kept a low profile over the years and turned down various interviews and invitations so they could lead a quiet life. On the 10th anniversary of 921, however, they accepted an invitation by the Taipei City Government, not only to thank officers from the Fire Department who rescued them, but also to encourage survivors of Typhoon Morakot through example.

Ma’s treat for soldiers spurs complaint
　

By Ko Shu-ling
STAFF REPORTER
Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 2

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) was heckled by a Typhoon Morakot victim in Pingtung yesterday as he treated soldiers to cold drinks in an air-conditioned room.

Ma and National Security Council Secretary-General Su Chi (蘇起) toured Linbian Township (林邊), one of the areas hardest hit by Morakot last month.

Linbian residents also complained that a key road had been repaired that morning, just in time for Ma’s visit.

Seeing Ma was having a cold drink inside an air-conditioned room, a man outside shouted: “Are you here to drink? Do you know how Linbian residents are suffering?”

Ma spent the last of his NT$3,600 consumer vouchers to buy cold drinks for himself and soldiers who had helped with the relief and cleanup project.

With more than NT$2 billion (US$62.5 million) of the vouchers — which were issued ahead of Lunar New Year — not yet spent, Ma urged the public yesterday to use them before they expire on Sept. 30.

Military response to 921 was ‘fastest’ in the world
　

SERVING THE NATION: Many of the young soldiers who took part in rescue efforts after the 921 Earthquake struck saw things that no training could have prepared them for

STAFF WRITER, WITH CNA
Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 3
　

Among the many recollections of heroism and sacrifice in the wake of the killer earthquake that struck the nation 10 years ago, one of the most significant is the account of the swift response and hard work of the country’s military.

Huang Jung-tsun (黃榮村), president of China Medical University who served as executive director of the 921 Earthquake Post-­Disaster Recovery Commission, recalled that 13 minutes after the magnitude 7.3 temblor struck, the military responded to calls for assistance and was able to report to government agencies about the situation on the ground.

“That response time was faster than in any other country,” Huang said.

Many of the officers were young, barely 20, and had never been on an actual battlefield. They were horrified at the scenes they encountered when they arrived in Jiji (集集), Nantou County, the epicenter of the quake that struck Taiwan on Sept. 21, 1999.

Entering what must have seemed to them like a war zone: They saw entire blocks of collapsed buildings, dead bodies and many people trapped under tonnes of rubble.

In a race against time, they dug through the rubble trying to save lives.

When night fell, the county was thrown into darkness because the earthquake had disrupted the electricity supply. Fear and uncertainty reigned as aftershocks continued to rock the area. People slept on the streets, afraid to go indoors.

Amid the devastation and despite their inexperience, the young soldiers worked tirelessly in unfamiliar circumstances.

Aside from rescuing earthquake victims, helping to restore disrupted traffic and distributing relief, the officers had another task that many thought was the hardest of all — moving corpses to local funeral homes.

As the Nantou County funeral parlor could not cope with the number of bodies from the quake, some bodies had to be placed in makeshift funeral homes nearby.

For at least one week, the young military officers worked day and night with no reprieve from the sound of Buddhist monks chanting mantras to pacify the souls of the dead and the drone of compressors in containers that were being used as makeshift morgues.

Lin Ming-chen (林明溱), a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator and then-head of Jiji Township, said: “The military was very helpful in transporting bodies to funeral parlors and clearing rubble.”

The military rescue and relief operation was led by General Chen Chen-hsiang (陳鎮湘), who was commander of the Army at the time.

Shortly after the quake hit at 1:47am, the military instructed the 10th Army Corps stationed nearby to rush to the scene and to report on the situation, Chen said.

All the reports were the same: “The situation is very, very serious,” Chen said. He decided to immediately launch an all-out rescue operation and set up a rescue command center at the Nantou County Stadium.

Within 12 hours of the quake, the Army had mobilized thousands of military officers and transported to the stadium 200,000 packets of rations, 1,800 first aid kits, 50 large tents, 20,000 blankets and 7,570 liters of diesel fuel.

Military helicopters landing at the stadium and Dongshih Riverside Park helped transport the injured to hospitals in the area.

Then-general chief of staff Tang Yiau-min (湯曜明) said that in the following days, the military transported 100,000 ration packets, 30,000 bottles of mineral water and instant food every day to quake-­affected areas of Puli (埔里), ­Shihgang (石岡) and Dongshih (東勢), which were cut off from the rest of the country after the quake.

When the first military units arrived, they had to use simple tools to dig under debris, as they did not want to waste a minute of the “golden 72 hours after the disaster,” which are considered the most crucial to saving lives in an emergency.

The 8th Army Corps stationed in the south later sent in more engineering and medical personnel, who brought with them heavy-duty equipment to help clear debris and facilitate the restoration of traffic and communications.

Day and night, the soldiers grappled with the task of shifting piles of rubble in what was one of the most scenic places in Taiwan, Chen said.

Some of the young soldiers were traumatized by the sight of bodies and people’s suffering and required psychological counseling, he said.

The first stage of the military operation focused on rescuing people. Later, it shifted to post-quake relief, which was divided into two major phases: clearing the rubble and constructing houses to shelter those left homeless by the quake, Chen said.

The 921 earthquake killed more than 2,400 people and caused billions of dollars in losses, but the tragedy galvanized the nation. Donations and support from the public poured in and the military worked closely with the public sector during the disaster recovery period.

Chen said the military had rapidly mobilized from top to bottom, adding that rescue operations were a “brilliant unified effort.”

Ten years later, life finds its way out of disaster
　

THE LONG HEALING: Lives were lost and dreams were crushed, but over the years the survivors of the earthquake rebuilt their lives and some are now trying to help
　

By Lin Chia-chi and Hsieh Chiu-feng
STAFF REPORTERS
Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 3

Ten years ago today, a two-minute long earthquake turned into hell on earth for many Taiwanese.

One hundred and thirty four children lost both their parents; the youngest was not even one year old. The Child Welfare League Foundation said that 10 years after the disaster, almost 60 percent of those children are now independent and living on their own.

Foundation president Wang Yu-min (王毓敏) said that 40 percent of the children are still in school and that three are in graduate school. Thirty-two percent have found jobs; three are teachers, one is a nurse.

Feng Yen (馮燕), chairman of the Child Welfare League Foundation, said that just like Typhoon Morakot, which hit Taiwan early last month, the 921 Earthquake created tremendous tragedy and chaos, but Taiwan managed to show its vitality and ability to rise again.

Rebuilt areas in central and southern Taiwan now show a new face, Feng said.

The 134 children who struggled in the wake of the 921 Earthquake without their parents are the precious gifts of 96 families — new sprouts growing out of the rubble, tender but strong, she said.

Among the surviving children was Lee Chin-te (李進德), who was only 17 years old back then.

He was living in a dormitory near National Nantou Senior High School in Nantou City. After the quake, he knew in his heart that his old house in Jhongliao Township (中寮), Nantou County, was in great danger.

At daybreak, a friend of his mother came to his dormitory.

The ride home was particularly long that day. While it usually took one hour from downtown Nantou to Jhongliao, as most roads and bridges were destroyed by the earthquake, they had to use detours and even changed vehicles.

“I rushed to my completely collapsed home at dawn and immediately saw my younger brother sitting by the debris. His face and thighs were still bleeding,” Lee said.

“‘Where is mom?’ I asked. [My brother] stood up and followed me to our mother’s bedroom and we started to remove all the dirt and stones and steel bars with our hands, in complete silence. We found our mother eventually — but it was too late to say goodbye,” Lee said.

Over the years, Lee and his younger brother, Lee Chun-wei (李俊緯), had a tacit agreement not to talk about the quake. When the two chatted about it recently, they were surprised how brave they were. The older Lee said that after this experience, they would never be apart.

Lee Chin-te became interested in special education and completed his higher education in six years, thanks to a sponsorship by the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families.

After graduating from college, he became a teacher in special education at Pate Junior High School in Taoyuan County and was responsible for the “transition class,” which helps school dropouts develop relationships. The next year, he also began to sponsor children from disadvantaged households.

“Entering the field of special education is actually self-therapy, an attempt to make up for the incomplete love in my childhood,” he said.

Sometimes he would talk about the disaster with his students, prompting some to ask: “Teacher, are you still sad now?”

I feel increasingly better and I am capable of loving again, he replied.

“When my mom was alive, I seldom celebrated Mother’s Day with her. After she left, I often told her that I missed her dearly in my heart,” he said.

Another survivor, nicknamed Xiao Wen (小汶), said she wanted to share her experience with those who suffered similar hardship, including survivors of Morakot.

“Safety is a true blessing, so cheer up! Disasters will make you grow,” said Xiao Wen, who lost her right foot in the earthquake.

On the night the quake hit, the girl — a fifth-grader at the time — lived in Dali Township (大里), ­Taichung County. After the concrete building they lived in collapsed, she and her second-oldest sister were trapped for more than 10 hours.

In terrible pain, at one point the two sisters decided to end their lives by using broken glass. The scar can still be seen on her wrist.

In intensive care for almost a year, the 11-year-old remained terrified of aftershocks and learned that her parents, eldest sister and younger brother were all gone.

For a long time Xiao Wen could not stand her prosthesis. However, after some water therapy last year, she changed her mind about the artificial limb that helped her walk for all these years.

“Without it, how could I be walking?” she said.

Hospital personnel learned hard lesson in disaster work

STAFF WRITER, WITH CNA
Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 3

On the 10th anniversary of the massive earthquake that struck the nation at 1:47am on Sept. 21, 1999, employees at the Chu Shan Show Chwan Hospital, which was badly damaged in one of the worst affected areas, recalled the difficulties they faced during the aftermath and reflected on the lessons learned.

The head nurse on duty, Su Chen-hua and the nursing staff rushed about trying to evacuate the 147 patients and salvage what they could of life-support equipment. The only things they could see, however, were warped doors and corridors, gaping ceilings, rubble, broken fire hydrants spouting water and collapsed walls.

The two-year-old private hospital, located just 65m from the Chelungpu Fault (車籠埔斷層) in central Taiwan — the epicenter of the magnitude 7.3 quake — was heavily damaged. Some thought it was beyond salvage.

Initial estimates showed that repairing or rebuilding the 13-story hospital would cost NT$150 million (US$4.62 million). None of the shareholders was willing to invest any more than they already had.

Chuang Pi-kun (莊碧焜), the hospital’s vice president, said that when senior government officials visited the hospital during post-quake inspection tours, they promised government aid — offers that never materialized.

“Gradually, we came to understand that we would have to rely on ourselves,” he said.

The main task was to make the hospital functional again so it could provide care for earthquake survivors, while charting a path for its survival.

A week after the earthquake, the hospital managed to set up a field unit in nearby Putou (埔頭), near Jhushan (竹山), but this was not enough to put the hospital back online. Hsieh Hui-lung (謝輝龍), president of Show Chwan, said he was tempted to give up his goal of restoring the hospital, but his resolve to rebuild the hospital grew firmer when a surprising donation came weeks after the earthquake from a patient who handed Hsieh a check for NT$200,000. The patient, surnamed Wu (吳), had obtained the money from a government compensation program for his house.

Other offers of help came from hospitals in Changhua, Taoyuan, Yunlin, Tainan and other parts of the country that donated medical equipment and other items to help Show Chwan Hospital resume operations.

Hwang Ming-ho (黃明和), founder and chairman of the Show Chwan Hospitals Group, donated a 130-ping (430m³) prefabricated building, while Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp (陽明海運) and Evergreen Marine Corp (長榮海運) rented 58 containers to be used by the hospital as makeshift facilities.

On Nov. 1, 1999, the “container hospital” — likely the first of its kind in the world — opened to the public.

However, Show Chwan could not continue indefinitely to operate from a cluster of containers. After inspections and assessments by structural and civil engineers and geologists, it was determined that the main structure of the hospital could be repaired. The restoration project was completed in 2000 and the hospital reopened the same year.

Years later, Hsieh said the 921 Earthquake underscored the need to make hospitals disaster proof.

“Major emergencies and disasters can be compounded if health facilities fail,” he said.

For reconstruction, high-end materials that can absorb seismic shocks were used to reduce the risk of sudden collapse, he said.

The hospital now has backup power and water systems and special designs and devices to ensure that critical medical facilities remain functional after a major earthquake, Hsieh said, adding that the hospital has prioritized disaster emergency training with its medical and paramedical staff because a community-based hospital must be able to offer first-aid treatment after major disasters.

A communication network with other healthcare providers in the area has also been developed so that a strong support system is in place in the event of a disaster, Hsieh said.

A premier who would back down

Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 8

China has threatened to retaliate if The 10 Conditions of Love, a documentary about World Uyghur Congress president Rebiya Kadeer, is screened as part of the Kaohsiung Film Festival. Beijing has also banned a new book by Taiwanese writer Lung Ying-tai (龍應台) about the tumult of 1949, when Communist rebels defeated the Nationalist government and forced the latter to retreat to Taiwan. China may be shaping as a great power, but such behavior betrays its inability to rise above autocratic impulses.

The content of films and books and how it is transmitted are matters of freedom of expression. If China insists on putting economic pressure on Taiwan over legitimate subjects of debate, its efforts will backfire by widening the political gap between the two sides.

In Taiwan, four ways have emerged in dealing with such meddling.

The first is resistance. The book should be published and the film should be screened without interference, supporters say, and China’s opinions on the matter can be safely ignored.

The second way changes the approach to reduce the fallout. Threatened with a Chinese tourist boycott of Kaohsiung, the city government decided to proceed with four screenings of the documentary at the Kaohsiung Film Archive ahead of the festival proper. This concession claims to protect artistic freedom and the public’s right to watch films at the same time as meeting the concerns of the tourism industry. It is unlikely, however, that this will satisfy China.

The third way is taking a gradual approach and waiting for protests to subside and tempers to cool before acting. By banning Lung’s book before it went on sale, China took the opposite approach and helped make it a top seller in Taiwan and elsewhere.

Commenting on the matter, Lung said: “I think whoever made the decision to ban my book definitely hasn’t read it. But never mind. First let them get on with preparations for National Day on Oct. 1. I think once National Day is over there should be no problem.”

Lung says the fuss only highlights the lack of understanding between Taiwan and China, and that she would quietly wait for the Chinese authorities to change their attitude. There is no guarantee, however, that they will do so.

The fourth way is to bow in the face of adversity. Premier Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) said the decision to bring forward screenings of the Kadeer film is a matter for the Kaohsiung City Government and not one in which the central government would intervene.

When answering questions in the Legislative Yuan, however, he said: “If we’re doing business together, and you would like me to go to your place and buy things more often, but you do something to upset me, then I’m not going to go and buy from you.”

The comment suggests that the central government would rather cater to China’s whims and political agenda than defend the stuff of a pluralistic society.

Which is the best way to deal with a neighbor as obnoxious and powerful as China? In strategic terms, the answer might differ according to the circumstances. Consideration would be given to dignity, time and expense in dealing with a problem, room for negotiation, balancing various interests and so on.

Sometimes a head-on collision is not the best option, but it is never acceptable to give way completely. It is therefore regrettable that the premier should attempt to please Beijing by suggesting that the Kaohsiung City Government back down entirely. Aside from reinforcing the impression that the new premier will end up an ineffectual toady, Wu’s comment were an affront to the dignity of this country and the values that give it strength.

An NIA branch that’s above the law
　

By Kao Jung-chih 高榮志
Monday, Sep 21, 2009, Page 8

‘A brief investigation of the Special Operation Corps shows us that it has close to absolute executive and judicial power — the kind of power that is bound to lead to absolute corruption sooner or later.’

In a speech to mark Lawyers’ Day on Sept. 9, President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said that “absolute power corrupts absolutely,” adding that he was always aware of this and constantly reminded himself to fully respect the separation of powers and governmental checks and balances.

The executive branch, he said, would respect the independence of the legislature and never interfere in the judiciary.

At almost the same time, prosecutors were searching the office of the head of the National Immigration Agency’s (NIA) Special Operation Corps in Taichung, collecting evidence and applying to have him detained on charges of sexual harassment.

A brief investigation of the Special Operation Corps shows us that it has close to absolute executive and judicial power — the kind of power that is bound to lead to absolute corruption sooner or later.

The Special Operation Corps is a department of the NIA, which in turn falls under the Ministry of the Interior. It therefore has executive powers, principally to investigate foreigners — in most cases foreign migrant workers and people from China residing illegally in Taiwan — and to detain and deport them.

It goes without saying that people residing illegally within a nation’s borders — be it through illegal immigration, fake marriages or by working illegally — have to be detained for a certain period between the conclusion of the investigation and the time of their deportation.

This detention is authorized by an administrative measure: Article 38 of the Immigration Act (入出國及移民法) calls it temporary detention, which in principle limits detention to 60 days, although it can be extended “if necessary.”

At first glance there is nothing obviously wrong with the terms of the law, but implementation is another matter altogether.

First, detention is in reality a limitation on the individual freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution.

Regardless of whether it is prettified by calling it protection, detention, or imprisonment, it is still a matter of locking people up and, in the case of migrants, there is no judicial intervention in the decision to lock people up.

This in itself can be said to be a flaw in the formulation of this law.

Even more absurd, the NIA often turns the exception into the rule by extending “temporary” detention beyond 60 days. Not surprisingly, this situation has repeatedly been a target for criticism by Taiwanese and overseas human rights advocacy groups.

In practice, the Specialized Operation Corps is in charge of detentions. It catches illegal residents, locks them up and decides whether to extend their detention.

The Specialized Operation Corps thus has a great number of functions rolled into one.

Even in the case of people suspected of committing serious crimes, prosecutors are required to apply to a court for approval to keep them in detention, and their detention can only be extended once, for a maximum of four months.

The Specialized Operation Corps, on the other hand, does not need the approval of a judge and detainees are not given the protection of any procedure for arguing their case before their detention is extended.

The corps can detain people indefinitely without giving any reason, which grants it unbridled power over migrant workers.

This situation makes a complete mockery of the constitutional principle of checks and balances on power.

In addition, one can imagine how detainees will bow their heads and swallow any insult to avoid offending the Specialized Operation Corps to ensure that their return home proceeds smoothly.

This gives the corps exclusive control over the lives of detainees.

Short-term detention before deportation may be fine, but if a detainee is suspected of criminal involvement, and as long as his treatment does not fall below the standards set out in the Code of Criminal Procedure, suspicions that detention can be replaced by administrative measures may be temporarily ignored.

Some foreigners held in long-term detention are in fact witnesses to, or even victims of, crime, but languish in jail while the wheels of justice grind on at a snail’s pace — just to ensure that they will appear as witnesses in court.

Of course, not everything about the Specialized Operation Corps is negative. It has a small number of staff who must deal with a lot of tasks. In that respect, they are deserving of sympathy.

The problems, however, are more widespread and ultimately it is prejudice that is to blame.

Many Taiwanese believe that human rights do not fully apply in the case of people from Southeast Asia or China.

As long as such attitudes persist, it should come as no surprise if the abuse of human rights continues.

Kao Jung-chih is a lawyer and an executive board member of the Taiwan Association for Human Rights.