Taiwan should continue to protect its freedom of expression while commemorating late Nobel Peace Prize-winning Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo (劉曉波) with a memorial day to support democracy and human rights, Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi said yesterday.
Democracy is thriving in Taiwan, with a high level of freedom of speech and human rights protection, but China has “killed” one of its most respected dissidents, Ebadi said during a meeting with lawmakers and human rights advocates in the legislature yesterday.
“In my opinion, China is a killer, a murderer” for ignoring the medical needs of cancer-stricken Liu, which led to his death on Thursday, Ebadi said.
Photo: Lu Yi-hsuan, Taipei Times
There are many political prisoners in Iran and other non-democratic nations who suffer the same fate, Ebadi said, calling on Taiwan to remember Liu’s death with a memorial day and commemorative ceremonies to honor his struggle against authoritarianism.
Ebadi said that in an earlier meeting yesterday with President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), she also asked Tsai to commemorate Liu’s death to remember his fight for democracy.
Ebadi said she saw people protesting on the streets of Taipei in support of China, which suggests that Taiwan has a high degree of freedom of expression.
“People are free to say what they want to and stage protests as they want. That is why I believe the freedom of speech is the first step in democracy. Do not allow this to be harmed,” she said.
Saying that Iranian laws tolerate discrimination against women, Ebadi praised Taiwan’s development in women’s rights.
“Thirty-eight percent of the legislators are women in Taiwan. It is very good and I wish it could go up to 50 percent,” she said.
Members of the international press freedom group Reporters Without Borders (RSF) were also present at the meeting.
RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire said the group decided to set up its first Asia office in Taiwan as the nation has the highest level of press freedom in the region and a boisterous media landscape.
There are indications that media freedom in the US, Europe and Asia is worsening, but Taiwan has set a good example of protecting press freedom, Deloire said.
He emphasized the importance of media freedom especially as Beijing continues to suppress the media, which would have a negative affect on regional development, Deloire said.
The freedom of the press in Taiwan has to be augmented by the decriminalization of defamation and increased resistance against media manipulation, he said.
Defamation is punishable by up to two years in prison, which Deloire said could be used to muzzle the media.
“There should be [civil] punishment for defamation, but it is not legitimate that people can go to jail for this,” he said.
The RSF’s Taipei branch would begin operations by the end of this year and promote and defend media independence, he said.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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