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Protecting our freedom of speech
Thursday, Apr 08, 2010, Page 8
As growing numbers of Falun Gong practitioners flee persecution in China, they
are coming to the attention of overseas Chinese. Protest activities where they
hold up banners and arrange press conferences accusing China of persecution are
spreading all over the world. Falun Gong activities are a common sight on the
streets of Taipei, which is why it was surprising that police fined one of the
movement¡¦s adherents for distributing flyers in front of Taipei 101.
Interior designer Hsu Po-kun (³\¬f©[) challenged the fine, and, fortunately, the
Taipei District Court decided he did not have to pay up. Had that not been the
case, it would have been a dark smudge indeed on freedom of expression in
Taiwan.
Hsu often goes to Taipei 101 to display protest signs aimed at Chinese tourists
that accuse the Chinese government of violating human rights and suppressing
Falun Gong. On Dec. 4, he was fined NT$300 for obstructing traffic. Hsu brought
the case to the Taipei District Court, where Judge Lin Meng-huang (ªL©s¬Ó) ruled
that the police officer who charged him had interfered with Hsu¡¦s freedom of
speech and dismissed the fine. In the verdict, Lin also criticized China for
restricting people¡¦s freedom of speech and called on the Taiwanese government to
protect human rights.
To break China¡¦s blockade on news about Falun Gong and protest China¡¦s treatment
of Falun Gong practitioners, its adherents in Taiwan often display placards and
banners at Taipei 101, a popular attraction for Chinese tour groups. In
democratic Taiwan, this falls under the constitutionally protected freedom of
speech, and must be respected. Police interference in these demonstrations is
unacceptable.
China suppresses freedom of speech and persecutes Falun Gong members, which has
sparked strong criticism from international human rights groups. If the
impression is created that the authorities are handing out fines to Falun Gong
members for engaging in legal and constitutionally protected protests, it would
deal a serious blow to Taiwan¡¦s democratic and human rights image. The
government¡¦s strongly pro-China policies and its constant and deliberate
attempts to avoid upsetting China seem to be having an effect on the lower
levels of law enforcement, which could result in attempts to restrict the Falun
Gong demonstrations as law enforcers follow the cues of the central government¡¦s
attempts to please China. This is a good example of how the administrative
system has degenerated.
No other democracy has banned or fined Falun Gong followers. Even when one
member made her way into the White House to protest when Chinese President Hu
Jintao (JÀAÀÜ) visited former US president George W. Bush, she was quietly removed
from the scene, but no charges were filed.
If Hsu¡¦s fine had been confirmed, Taiwan would have become the laughing stock of
the democratic world. Just like Tibetan leader the Dalai Lama or the Uighur
leader Rebiya Kadeer, Falun Gong practitioners are not violent. Their human
rights must be protected, and as long as their protests are peaceful, their
freedom of speech remains constitutionally protected.
China does not subscribe to the internationally recognized values of human
rights and freedom, and it therefore lacks the respect of the international
community. The areas of freedom and human rights make up the most glaring
differences between Taiwan and China, and this is the most fundamental reason
why Taiwanese do not want to accept Chinese rule.
This incident is a very good lesson in human rights, democracy and freedom for
Taiwan and clear evidence of the judiciary¡¦s independence from the
administrative branch. Even if administrative powers have sometimes been abused,
the judiciary can still correct the mistakes of the executive branch and
guarantee freedom and human rights in Taiwan.
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