President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday said that doubts regarding the validity of her doctoral dissertation were “fake news” and that she would take Ho De-fen (賀德芬), professor emeritus of National Taiwan University’s department of law, to court over the issue.
Ho told a news conference earlier in the day that Tsai had not obtained her doctorate from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) as she has claimed.
Ho showed what she said was an independent investigation by academic Hwan C. Lin (林環牆) on whether Tsai had obtained her degree from the LSE in 1984, but did not detail its results.
Photo: CNA
Lin is an associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte’s Belk College of Business.
The issue at hand is Tsai’s political and academic credibility, both of which are “universal values in a modern society,” Ho said.
Tsai on Facebook said that the allegations were “factually incorrect” and “fake news,” adding that the LSE and the Ministry of Education have over the past several months offered proof that her dissertation was sound.
The president said that she was resolved to take Ho to court over the allegations.
LSE doctoral students are required to sign a declaration when taking their dissertation examination stating that they authorize for an electronic copy of their dissertations to be deposited with the university and that they would be open for public reference, Tsai said.
“In short, if I received my diploma, I submitted my thesis,” Tsai said.
Her diploma bears the stamp and seal of the university, Tsai said, adding that her dissertation, titled “Unfair Trade Practices and Safeguard Actions,” could be found at the British Library of Political and Economic Science.
Such false accusations only serve to disrupt society and overshadow the discussion of national policies, she said, adding that she hoped that Ho and others would stop spreading rumors.
The president said that she is open to public supervision, which is the essence of democracy, but added that having democracy and freedom does not mean tolerance for disinformation.
Presidential Office spokesman Xavier Chang (張惇涵) held a news conference to address Ho’s allegations.
Tsai is listed on the LSE People Web site and in 2016 received a special mention on the university’s Web site congratulating her for winning that year’s presidential election, Chang said.
She presented the same credentials and paperwork for previous government positions, which were confirmed and verified as authentic, he said.
The issue would be settled in court and the judiciary would protect the president’s legal rights, he added.
Additional reporting by CNA
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