One Year On: Justice - Too much empty talk undermines commitment to human rights

This pattern -- get it done quickly and don't allow any public debate on the matter -- can also be seen in the attempts to ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

"There is no doubt that the direction the Chen administration is taking is the right one and deserves applause. But what is to be done must be carried out with prudence and professionalism," said Peter Huang (黃文雄), a leading human rights activist and advisor to the president.

"Having waited so long for the changes, we're all too happy we are heading in the right direction -- fully determined to promote and implement human rights policies. But we hope that every step and every policy is well thought through. Otherwise the changes will do more harm than good," Huang said.

Huang, once a member of the president's human rights advisory group, quit the position because he disapproved of the way the group worked.

In addition to Huang's departure, many other former proponents of the advisory body have since become its fiercest critics.

Ford Liao (廖福特), an expert in international human rights law, said the group was originally set up to work on the creation of a national human rights commission and to provide the president with advice on matters concerning human rights.

So far, however, the group has done little about setting up a human rights body but has instead done many things that exceed its authority, according to Liao.

Lin Feng-cheng from the Taiwan Association for Human Rights also spoke out against the group, of which Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) is convener.

"I think [the advisory group] has done more harm than good. What I can't agree with is the fact that Lu has used the group to gain publicity for herself. Press conferences are held every time the group meets, and what's more outrageous is that they talked about Lu's lawsuit against the Journalist magazine during one meeting," Lin said.

"By definition it should have no other function but giving advice to the president, but it has been used by the vice president for publicity stunts to attract media attention,"Lin said.

In general, the direction of human rights policy in the Chen administration meets with the approval of human rights groups.

However, Lin pointed out, to achieve its goals, it is essential that the government first clarify its conception of human rights and that it invite public debate on the subject.