|
Prison blocks
publication of biweekly Chen column
QUESTIONABLE? After President Ma said Chen
Shui-bian had the right to publish articles from jail, it was believed that
authorities would stop blocking them
By Vincent Y. Chao / Staff Reporter
Prison officials have blocked former president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) from
publishing another article from jail.
Taipei Prison authorities said that questionable content was again the reason
behind its latest rejection of a Chen article, in a move that Chen supporters
have labeled unconstitutional.
Chen’s office said articles he writes in jail are protected under freedom of
expression rights, especially as they focus on sensitive political matters, and
that they are allowed under laws governing prison conduct.
Prison officials are free to determine whether the subject is appropriate and
whether it violates the discipline and reputation of the prison, but not whether
it is politically correct, a statement from his office said.
“Chen’s article this time deals with [Democratic Progressive Party (DPP)] unity
... does this count, according to the prison, as the wrong sort of topic?” the
statement asked.
Controversy over the blocking of Chen’s articles first erupted last month when a
magazine column written by the former president was censured and revised,
causing it to miss a submission deadline, even though an earlier review had
approved the article.
Chen has published three books from prison and maintains a biweekly column
titled “A-Bian’s journal.”
Supporters said the move was unusual and asked the Ministry of Justice to
explain.
Questioned about the issue during a newspaper interview on June 24, President Ma
Ying-jeou (馬英九) said that inmates are protected under freedom of expression
laws, in a move that suggested support for publication of Chen’s column.
The article, which the former president was paid for, was printed in a later
edition of the Chinese-language Next Magazine.
Chen Chih-chung (陳致中), the former president’s son, said the latest decision by
Taipei Prison officials was surprising given that Ma had already clarified the
legal position.
The most recent article, part of his biweekly column, was originally to be
published by the Chinese-language Taiwan Times yesterday, his office said.
Titled “Happily seeing the [DPP’s] four hand in hand,” in reference to a spirit
of cooperation between DPP Chairperson and presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen
(蔡英文) and three former premiers, Chen Shui-bian wrote about his opinions on
party unity, the office statement said.
Prison administrator Su Kun-ming (蘇坤銘) said that although there were no problems
with the subject of the article, parts of the content were “inappropriate,”
without elaborating.
This is the first time that Chen Shui-bian’s biweekly column has missed its
deadline since he started writing it in December 2009.
DPP spokesperson Chen Chi-mai (陳其邁) called the rejection “politically motivated”
and said that prison administrators should have looked at relevant laws before
proceeding under what he said were orders from the Ma administration.
Chen Shui-bian and his wife, Wu Shu-jen (吳淑珍), were each sentenced to
17-and-a-half-year prison terms by the Supreme Court last year after being
convicted of corruption and taking bribes.
|
