Premier Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁) yesterday said he has instructed government agencies to propose revisions to three major laws to better address the issue of sexual abuse and harassment, as allegations of sexual misconduct spread across the political field.
The three laws are: the Act of Gender Equality in Employment (性別工作平等法), the Gender Equality Education Act (性別平等教育法) and the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act (性騷擾防治法).
“No one wants to see sexual harassment occur, and proposed amendments would be ready at the start of the next legislative session [in September]. We hope to have the support of lawmakers across party lines to prevent further personal harm, assist the victims, safeguard them and protect their rights,” Chen said.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
In the latest development, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Taipei City Councilor Chung Pei-chun (鍾沛君) on Thursday night accused media personality Lucifer Chu (朱學恒) of forcibly hugging and kissing her during a dinner gathering in Taipei in August last year.
She said as she had pursued the matter, Chu wrote an official apology two weeks later.
A political commentator, Chu is a popular YouTuber and frequent guest on political talk shows.
Chu yesterday said he had suspended his YouTube channel and that he would stop appearing in media and public events for the time being.
He apologized, but said he was too drunk at the time and had no memory of what happened that night.
Separately, New Power Party member Jerry Liu (劉仕傑) was accused by a former party staffer of grabbing her in a vehicle, forcibly kissing her and pulling her hand to touch his private parts.
NPP Chairwoman Claire Wang (王婉諭) issued a public apology yesterday, saying: “We are sorry we did not know about this and for allowing this deplorable person to participate in public affairs and giving him a platform for public discourse.”
The NPP later yesterday said it received a statement from Liu that he was withdrawing from the party.
As of press time last night, Liu had not responded to the accusations.
State-run Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute chairman and prominent film critic Lan Tsu-wei (藍祖蔚) on Thursday was also accused by Taiwan-based Korean Studies Academy CEO Rick Chu (朱立熙) of repeatedly sexually harassing female reporters.
Taipei City Councilor Lee Yen-hsiu (李彥秀) of the KMT told a news conference yesterday that Lan, being a top figure in the film and cultural sector who is highly regarded and respected in society, must adhere to standards of morality and behavior.
Lan denied the allegations, but tendered his resignation, “because I don’t want to become cannon fodder in the political struggle.”
A 72-year-old man in Kaohsiung was sentenced to 40 days in jail after he was found having sex with a 67-year-old woman under a slide in a public park on Sunday afternoon. At 3pm on Sunday, a mother surnamed Liang (梁) was with her child at a neighborhood park when they found the man, surnamed Tsai (蔡), and woman, surnamed Huang (黃), underneath the slide. Liang took her child away from the scene, took photographs of the two and called the police, who arrived and arrested the couple. During questioning, Tsai told police that he had met Huang that day and offered to
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