Vice President and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman William Lai (賴清德) yesterday announced new party procedures for filing complaints and investigating reports of sexual misconduct in response to more accusations of negligence against the party in handling reports of sexual abuse.
In what local media dubbed Taiwan’s #MeToo movement, more people went public yesterday with allegations about the DPP, other parties and local governments.
Lai said he deeply regrets the situation and apologized to the victims, while also praising them for having the courage to come forward.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
“When facing bullying and violations in the workplace, it is most important to stand up to protect your rights and your personal safety,” Lai told a news conference in Taipei. “The DPP cannot expect people to grant forgiveness at this time, but our party must learn from these painful experiences and take remedial action to restore people’s trust.”
“The DPP will not abandon our core values and ideals. We must review and reflect on ourselves to continue making progress, so that the voters can put their faith in our party,” said Lai, who is the DPP’s presidential candidate.
The party is to implement three reforms, Lai said.
Photo: Hsu Li-chuan, Taipei Times
The DPP would set up an office to deal with sexual harassment reports at the Gender Equality Department, he said.
Alternatively, victims can report directly to the secretary-general or send complaints to a dedicated e-mail address at dpphelpme@gmail.com, he added.
People would remain anonymous as an investigation is conducted, and the party would provide legal assistance and counseling for victims who press charges, Lai said.
The DPP has zero tolerance for sexual harassment, he said.
When wrongdoing is proven, the perpetrator would be immediately dismissed and would not be allowed to hold any job in the party, he added.
The DPP would also redraft the party charter to implement an internal mechanism for gender equality, with education programs to prevent sexual harassment and to establish an equal workplace, Lai said.
A firestorm of reports over the past two days led to two resignations: former DPP deputy secretary-general Hsu Chia-tien (許嘉恬) on Thursday and another yesterday by a Ministry of Labor chief secretary surnamed Tsai (蔡).
Tsai, who at the time led the DPP Department of Youth Development, had been accused of inaction after a woman reported being sexually harassed by a colleague a few years ago.
In another case, a female DPP employee yesterday said that she was harassed in 2018 by a man surnamed Lin (林), who worked in the party’s youth affairs section.
Party officials made a public apology yesterday, including DPP
Secretary-General Hsu Li-ming (許立明), deputy secretary-general Yang Yi-shan (楊懿珊), Gender Equality Department Director Lee Yen-jong (李晏榕) and spokesman Chang Chih-hao (張志豪).
Top officials of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) have also been accused of negligence when responding to sexual harassment allegations.
A woman who formerly worked at the TPP said that she was repeatedly harassed by a party deputy secretary last year and accused the party of trying to cover it up.
“[TPP Chairman] Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) was quick to condemn the DPP after these recent allegations, but the TPP has no right to do so because these incidents took place when I worked at the TPP,” she wrote. “It pains me to see TPP officials taking turns lashing out at the DPP when it should clean up its own act first.”
Ko said that reports of sexual harassment within the party have been handled immediately.
The system is trustworthy, not people, he said, adding that he would not criticize the DPP, but questioned how a case could drag on for nine months.
Separately, DPP New Taipei City Councilor Chang Chin-hao (張錦豪) said that a female employee at the New Taipei City Government committed suicide in 2020 after allegedly being sexually abused by a superior in a case investigated by the Control Yuan.
Chang accused New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) of concealing information about the case.
The New Taipei City Department of Health has already stated that it is as proactive as possible when it comes to preventing sexual violence, Hou’s office said, adding that creating a gender-equitable environment is everyone’s responsibility.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
RSS