Chuang Shen-yuan (莊深淵), the judge presiding over the Kuang San financial scandal (廣三案) case, searched former Legislative Yuan Speaker Liu Sung-fan's (劉松藩) residence a few weeks ago, triggering controversies over judicial independence. Yang Jen-shou (楊仁壽), secretary-general of the Judicial Yuan (司法院), said a legitimate search should have taken the timing of the search into consideration. Some judges criticized Chuang for being insufficiently sensitive to political issues.
What matters most about a judge is morality. Chuang is highly regarded for his moral character. Even Lin Chih-chung (林志忠), an attorney of Kuang San Group Chairman Tseng Cheng-jen (曾正仁), said Chuang "has no political character." From this viewpoint, we can exclude the assumption that Chuang is a brown-noser who carries out political persecution for the KMT. The uproar over the incident was basically the result of a "lack of political sensitivity." Chuang failed to notice the timing problem, resulting in the inappropriate linkage between the judicature and politics.
Is a "lack of political sensitivity" a defect? Should a judge be alert to political timing while investigating a case?
Taiwan's judicature lacks public credibility mainly because judges are too politically sensitive and are too aware of timing. Their political sense is so good that they dare not punish corrupted government officials. They are so concerned about timing that there is judicial leniency during election period. Therefore, "get elected or go to jail (當選過關落選被關)" has become a common dictum and we have dozens of legislators standing trial, their punishment having been delayed for as much as 10 years. And that is also why gangsters are able to bid for official positions and take control of politics.
People in the Taiwan hate "black gold politics." They criticized the judiciary for not being independent, but they also blamed Chuang for his poor political sense. Aren't they contradicting themselves?
That Taiwan's judicature is not independent is well-known, but it is not Chuang's fault. He was just made the scapegoat. Because his fellow colleagues are too aware of how to ride the tide of their times, Chuang, who insists on judicial independence, has been branded as a political hitman. Because his colleagues fail to take a firm stand on justice, Chuang's insistence becomes selective justice.
If those who know how to ride the tide of his times are encouraged and the person who has poor political sense is thrown into the pit, then judicial independence will always be a slogan.
Chuang Pei-chang is chief editorial writer of the China Times Express.
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