Chiayi County Commissioner Helen Chang (張花冠) of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday filed a sexual harassment complaint against another party member, Legislator Chen Ming-wen (陳明文), saying Chen’s actions at a temple festival last week made her “extremely uncomfortable.”
Chang said Chen put his arm around her shoulder and did not stop even though she told him it made her uneasy.
“The DPP is a party that supports gender equality. Taiwan has even seen the election of the nation’s first female president, yet sexual harassment and gender prejudice is still a prevalent problem in Taiwanese society,” Chang said.
Photocopy by Lin Yi-chang, Taipei Times
The social environment is biased in favor of perpetrators in such incidents, while laying the blame on victims, accusing them of wearing too little or asking them to settle such cases out of court, Chang said.
This is the result of a male patriarchy, Chang said, adding that she had brought formal accusations against Chen in the hope that the public would not continue to foster such modes of thought.
Chang said she wanted all female citizens to know that the law is sufficient to protect them and that political forces need to be brought in on such cases.
“We shall see” if the judiciary is fair and just, Chang said.
Chang and Chen, a former Chiayi County commissioner, have been engaged in a prolonged dispute over candidates for next year’s mayoral election.
Chang said she originally intended to bring the case to the attention of Chiayi District Chief Prosecutor Kuo Jen-ni (郭珍妮) on Friday last week, but was unable to do so because Kuo was on a break.
Chang said that she had not been on “talking terms” with Chen, whom she said had never apologized over the incident.
Chang also took issue with Chen’s wife, Liao Su-hui (廖素惠), apologizing for her husband’s actions.
Chang said it sets a bad example for women to have the wife apologize whenever their husband does something wrong.
Chiayi County Police Department Director Lin Ching-chiu (林清求) said the department has received the complaint and will investigate the matter.
Lin added that the hoped both parties would be able to handle the issue wisely.
Asked if she would bring up the matter at the DPP’s weekly Central Standing Committee meeting yesterday, Chang said she would not as party affairs come first, but added: “If the party has any respect for me, the chairperson should be concerned about the issue.”
Chang said she did not want President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who is also DPP chairperson, to smooth things over in Chen’s favor.
Chang rejected speculation that her complaint had anything to do with the elections, saying the issue was not whether Chen apologized, but his lack of respect for women.
Chen did not comment on the issue and said only that he would respect the results of the investigation.
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