A professor’s attempt to name a political party the “Pirate Party” (海盜黨) was thwarted again following previous rejections from the Ministry of the Interior and the Executive Yuan’s Administrative Appeals Commission.
The Taipei High Administrative Court earlier this week ruled against Chung Yuan Christian University associate professor Tai Che’s (戴浙) effort to name his party the “Pirate Party.” The party aims to reform the nation’s copyright law and the patent system, Tai said.
In the ruling, the High Administrative Court agreed with the ministry that the name of the party did not reflect the objective of the party.
The ruling came in the wake of Tai’s unsuccessful appeal with the Executive Yuan’s Administrative Appeals Commission over the ministry’s rejection of his party’s naming application.
The commission this February turned down the appeal, saying it agreed with the ministry’s reasoning.
The ministry rejected the party’s proposed name on the grounds that the name contradicted the stated aims of the party and that the name “pirate” could mislead the public into believing that members of the party “are real pirates.”
The Criminal Code also contains acts outlawing piracy, the ministry said.
Upset over the ministry’s refusal, Tai said that pirate parties exist in 17 countries to lobby for reforms to copyright laws and greater transparency in government, which he said was also the objective of his party.
The English word “pirate” could be interpreted as “free copyright” and his purpose in creating the party was not to form a criminal gang, he added.
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