The bill proposes that different government branches establish their own ethnic equality committees composed of academics and experts from different ethnic groups and authorize the committees to investigate allegations of racial discrimination.
The bill stipulates that anyone has the right to request an end to and compensation for discriminatory language, news reports, advertisements, political talk show content or any other form of intentional discrimination.
Unlike previous proposals, the bill introduces a two-year jail term or a NT$1,000 fine for those who “fuel discrimination.”
Although Liu had indicated his determination to push through the bill, Chiou said he was concerned whether the government would be able to actually carry out the proposed regulations.
“First of all, it would be difficult for people investigating a racial discrimination case to reach a consensus because of their different ethnic backgrounds,” Chiou said.
Without thorough planning, the proposal could end up being almost impossible to carry out, like the Political Donation Act (政治獻金法) or the Lobby Act (遊說法), Chiou said.
Association of Mainlander Taiwanese chief executive Huang Luo-fei (黃洛斐) voiced similar views.
“There are many historical and cultural factors behind the problem of ethnic inequality [in Taiwan]. It would be difficult to resolve ethnic issues by enacting a law,” Huang said.
She said that it would be tough to draw boundaries between different ethnic groups and that she favored an anti-discrimination act aimed at tackling discrimination based on factors such as gender.
She was also concerned about the KMT’s proposed punishment for those who “fuel discrimination” as it remained unclear in the bill what constituted the provocation of discrimination.
“For example, the language [used by politicians] to mobilize supporters of a certain ethnic community to vote for them ... Should it be considered discrimination?” she said.
“There could be controversy regarding what remarks or behavior should be considered discriminatory because it involves the second party’s feelings,” she said.
Huang was also against the KMT’s proposal that would allow different government branches to set up their own ethnic equality committees.
The government should integrate the functions and power of the committees and establish a national human rights commission, she said.
“The government should not hastily enact the law in response to Kuo’s case ... [without proper legislation], as we might see a lot of ethnic lawsuits and this would not help ensure peace between different ethnic communities [in Taiwan],” she said.
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