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Bill seeks to restrict civil servants' politicking time

Civil servants will be banned from supporting or opposing candidates in the year-end legislative elections as well as next year's presidential poll if an administrative neutrality bill passes the legislature.

The legislature's Organic Laws and Statutes Committee yesterday approved the preliminary review of the draft law governing administrative neutrality of civil servants.

Cross-party negotiations must be called to seek a consensus on controversial articles before the draft proceeds to the plenary legislative session for deliberation.

The committee members could not decide whether to include the decision-makers of state-owned businesses under the law and how to define "advance arrangement" of personnel and "advance allocation" of public resources.

Under the proposed law, career civil servants would be barred from taking part in any activities organized by a political party or group during office hours or when they are on duty.

They could not print, distribute or post campaign documents, pictures or flyers in the office; or take a job with any political party, group or their campaign office.

They would also be prohibited from flying, posting or wearing outfits bearing the flags or insignia of any political party, group or candidate or displaying such insignia.

They could not host campaign rallies, initiate signature drive or march or run campaign ads. Publicly stumping for a particular candidate would also be banned.

They could not use their position to raise funds for a particular political party, group or to stop or hamper other civil servants from legally raising funds for a particular political party, group or candidate.

Career civil servants would be allowed to bypass their immediate supervisor and complain to the higher management if the immediate supervisor asks them to engage in activities prohibited by the law.

The supervisor would face punishment for negligence and the civil servant could report the matter to the Control Yuan, and the watchdog body must give exclusive priority to such complaints.

Those who receive unfair treatment or unjustified punishment for refusing to engage in activities prohibited by the law could seek justice in accordance with the Public Functionaries Protection Act (公務人員保障法).

Those who violate the administrative neutrality law would receive punishment in conformity with the Law on Discipline of Civil Servants (公務人員懲戒法), Civil Servant Evaluation Act (公務人員考績法) and other legislations.

The draft bill would apply to public school superintendents or teachers holding administrative positions; professionals employed by public social educational institutions or research fellows holding administrative positions at research institutions and military personnel and managers.

Also regulated would be civil servants at independent institutions and those employed by institutions or foundations that are more than half-funded by the government as well as many categories of temporary government employees.
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