A DPP lawmaker yesterday called on the Ministry of National Defense (MND) to face up to the existence of homosexuality in the military and provide greater protection to servicemen from harassment by superiors or peers of the same sex.
Lawmaker Lin Chin-hsin (林進興), a new member of the defense committee of the legislature, said the MND has done a lot to protect female military personnel but not enough to protect male personnel, especially conscripts.
"There are many more homo-sexuals in the military than could be imagined. The gays in the military range in rank from soldiers to two-star generals," Lin said.
"The military is an isolated environment. Cases of sexual harassment are not easily made known to people outside. It is necessary for the legislature to set up a committee to handle and investigate sexual harassment in the military," he said.
Lin made the remarks as part of a news release his office sent out yesterday.
An aide to Lin, who declined to be identified, said the harassment the committee refers to should broken down into three types: male against female, male against male and female against male.
But Lin's main concern is male military personnel's sexual harassment against subordinates or peers of the same sex, adding that the other two types of harassment have already received enough attention from the MND.
According to ministry statistics, recorded cases of sexual harassment in the military from 1996 to 2001 numbered only 64, with eight falling into the category of rape, the aide said.
The figure may represent only the tip of the iceberg since reported cases are usually exposed by lawmakers or local elected officials rather than by the military itself, the aide said.
"It is necessary for the military to establish a transparent and just mechanism to handle cases of sexual harassment of servicemen by superiors or peers of the same sex," he said.
According to a defense official, homosexuals in the military are concentrated among officers, which could explain why many of the perpetrators of male-against-male harassment go undiscovered.
In the army, a company leader with a homosexual inclination may choose a conscript he deems attractive as his personal page or "errand boy."
There have been discoveries of company leaders forcing their message aides to have sex with them.
Several years ago, the leader of an army brigade had been shot to death by an "errand boy" under his command, who he had compelled to have sex with him. Army investigations showed that the soldier did it because he could no longer stand mistreatment by the brigade leader.
The navy had also witnessed a similar case in 1994 as the commander on an offshore island committed suicide after his "secret lover," a conscript, threatened to expose their relationship.
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
RSS