Jinwen University of Science and Technology in New Taipei City has come under fire after an online report that alleged several student groups coerced first-year students to partially disrobe and take part in other racy activities during a freshmen welcome camping activity earlier this month.
A female netizen who identified herself as a Jinwen student on Monday night posted a report titled “Is nudity a must for welcoming parties” on Dcard, an online academic bulletin board.
She detailed what she called “disgusting” activities at a camping event organized by the students’ associations of four departments — applied foreign languages, marketing and logistics, electronic engineering and environment and property management — at a resort in Miaoli County. Department student groups are common at Taiwanese universities and function like fraternities and sororities.
Photo: screen grab from Facebook
“Some of the ‘punishments’ we were handed really disgusted me. I was forced to have physical contact with complete strangers on a bus,” the netizen wrote about the tasks the students were assigned after losing in games.
“We were asked to bite on candies pinned on others,” she wrote, adding that she was forced to take part even though she had said she did not want to.
“They made one of my friends lick someone else’s toes,” she said.
Participants were filmed by association members without their consent, she wrote.
Some students were forced to accept punishments even after they told association members that they did not wish to have physical contact with people other than their partners, she said.
“In a game played in the afternoon, male students were told to take off their underwear and female students their bras,” the netizen wrote.
“Many of the boys wandered stark naked in a meadow,” she said. “The girls that went bra-less were stared at. Those stares made me really uncomfortable.”
Students were also divided into groups that were named after genitalia, she said.
Her post drew more than 11,000 reactions and 1,800 comments as of press time last night.
Many of the comments condemned the organizers, while others said: “Do not let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch” and “Do not tar other Jinwen students with the same brush.”
Attorney Victor Chiang (姜智揚) said that the actions of the older students could constitute duress and sexual harassment.
Jinwen chief secretary Lin Shu-tuan (林淑端) said that the incidents were regrettable and that university officials had warned organizers of the trip not to “cross the line” when playing games.
Jinwen Office of Students’ Affairs director Yu Ti (于第) said that the event was “very inappropriate.”
The university would bring the case to its gender equality committee for investigation and those students found responsible for the escapades would face punishment, Yu said.
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