The National Women’s League yesterday urged the government to exercise caution pursuing transitional justice, saying that it should not be used as a pretext to attack political rivals.
The remarks were part of a speech prepared by National Women’s League chairwoman Cecilia Koo (辜嚴倬雲), who asked league member Tien Ling-ling (田玲玲) to deliver the speech at a Taipei event celebrating International Women’s Day in her absence.
“If justice is defined as oppressing a competing political party or organizations that have once supported those parties with no regard for historical truth, then justice runs the risk of being unjust,” Tien said.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
Tien said the league, which has dedicated to protecting women’s rights and helping the disadvantaged, was of the opinion that the pursuit of transitional justice should be free of selfish motives.
Established by former president Chiang Kai-shek’s (蔣介石) wife, Soong Mayling (宋美齡), in 1950 and headed by her for decades, the league has seen its assets under government scrutiny, as its activities benefited from its close ties to the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
Much of its funding came from the Military Benefit Tax, which was levied on the US dollar value of all imported goods between 1955 and 1989.
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lai Jui-lung (賴瑞隆) accused the league of continued obfuscation of its finances and refusal to cooperate with investigations launched by the Ill-gotten Party Assets Settlement Committee.
Whether a political or civic group, the league should operate under principles of financial transparency, Lai said.
During the KMT’s decades-long authoritarian regime, the league was able to amass trillions of New Taiwan dollars from the money collected from the tax, Lai said.
New Power Party Legislator Hsu Yung-ming (徐永明) said the league was putting the cart before the horse, as transitional justice seeks to achieve is the correcting of injustices leftover from authoritarian regimes and righting history.
The league’s intention to resolve past injustices through donations does not constitute transitional justice, Hsu said, adding that the league should not seek to process its assets prior to investigation.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare should turn down the league’s donations, Hsu said, referring to the NT$16 billion (US$518.4 million) offered by the league on Monday.
Civil Affairs Department Deputy Director Lo Rui-ching (羅瑞卿) said the ministry hoped that the league would be transparent about its finances.
NEW AGREEMENT: Malaysia approved imports last year after nearly two years of negotiations and inspections to meet quarantine requirements, officials said Up to 3.6 tonnes of pomeloes from Taiwan cleared Malaysian customs on Friday, in the first shipment of Taiwanese pomeloes to Malaysia. Taiwan-grown pomeloes are popular in domestic and overseas markets for their tender and juicy taste, the Ministry of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency said. The fruit is already exported to Japan, Canada, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines, it added. The agency began applying for access to the Malaysian market in 2023, compiling data on climate suitability, pests and diseases, and post-harvest handling, while also engaging in nearly two years of negotiations with Malaysian authorities and submitting supplementary
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
One of two tropical depressions that formed offshore this morning could turn into a moderate typhoon by the weekend, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said today. Tropical Depression No. 21 formed at 8am about 1,850km off the southeast coast, CWA forecaster Lee Meng-hsuan (李孟軒) said. It is expected to move in a northwesterly direction as it continues building momentum, possibly intensifying into Typhoon Mitag this weekend, she added. The radius of the storm is expected to reach almost 200km, she said. It is expected to approach southeast of Taiwan on Monday and pass through the Bashi Channel between Tuesday and Wednesday,
Tigerair Taiwan and China Airlines (CAL) today announced that several international flights were canceled or rescheduled due to Typhoon Ragasa. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) has maintained sea and land warnings for the typhoon. Its storm circle reached the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) on Taiwan's southern tip at 11am today. Tigerair Taiwan said it canceled Monday's IT551/IT552 Taoyuan-Da Nang, IT606/IT607 Taoyuan-Busan and IT602 Taoyuan-Seoul Incheon flights. Tomorrow, cancelations include IT603 Seoul Incheon-Taoyuan, as well as flights between Taoyuan and Sapporo, Osaka, Tokyo Narita, Okinawa, Fukuoka, Saga, Tokyo Haneda, Nagoya, Asahikawa and Jeju. On Wednesday, the IT321/IT322 Kaohsiung-Macau round-trip would also be canceled. CAL announced that today's