Students at National Taiwan University (NTU) pushing for the establishment of a club centered on BDSM practices — which includes the erotic practices of bondage and role-playing — yesterday protested against the institution’s decision last week to block their application.
The club fell one vote short of the required nine votes from a 17-member committee made up of faculty, administrators and student representatives.
Members of the unendorsed club yesterday gathered on campus to perform live demonstrations of bondage practices in a bid to counter allegations that the practices were unsafe.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Rope artists, the title for seasoned practitioners in the art of bondage, tied the hands of several prospective club members behind their backs in a complex array of knots.
One student, surnamed Luo (羅), said she enjoyed being firmly tied up, as it made her feel “loved,” adding that she supported activities that challenged traditional notions of sexuality.
The committee should only have the right to evaluate formal and ceremonial aspects of the organization’s application, instead of questioning the club’s activities, said the president of the group, who said he wanted to be called Lisa.
“Certain committee members used their narrow views of BDSM culture to threaten others into voting against the club,” Lisa said, adding that one of the committee members showed an obscene video clip on his mobile phone to others to discredit BDSM practices.
In response, Student Activity Division director Wu Hsiu-ling (吳秀玲) said the students should respect the committee’s decision, as the members consisted of democratically elected members, including student representatives who were vocally supportive of the application.
“The application would actually never pass a strict formal evaluation, as the club intends to allow non-student membership,” Wu said, citing regulations that restrict membership to students of the university.
Wu said she had expected the application to pass, adding that the students are welcome to resubmit their application when they are better prepared to answer the safety concerns raised by the committee.
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