The Taiwan Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation yesterday urged people to stop using mental illness as a shorthand for inappropriate behavior, as controversy continues around a journalist’s imitation of a physically disabled rights lawyer on a talk show.
The term “crazy” or “mentally ill” (shenjingbing, 神經病) is often used in Taiwan to describe inappropriate or dangerous behavior, while negative stereotypes persist about mentally disabled people, the association said in a statement.
This stigma makes people afraid to seek help when needed, it said, adding that there is no shortage of labeling, while there is a shortage of people who are willing to tear down such labels.
Photo: Screengrab from YouTube
The association made the comments after entertainer Jacky Wu (吳宗憲) said he filmed an episode for the talk show The Night Night Show with Hello (賀瓏夜夜秀) and told the show production team that it was unacceptable to ridicule physically challenged people.
“You could find a normal person to play someone mentally ill [then poke fun at them], but you can’t get a mentally ill person to play a mentally ill person,” he said.
The show came under fire last week after its guest, Chinese journalist Wang Zhian (王志安), imitated Chen Chun-han (陳俊翰), a human rights lawyer and legislator-at-large candidate with spinal muscular atrophy, who spoke at a Democratic Progressive Party rally.
Wu’s comment seems to be an appeal in support of physically challenged people, but in reality is just smearing mentally challenged people, the association said.
The People with Disabilities Rights Protection Act (身心障礙者權益保障法) and the Mental Health Act (精神衛生法) ban media from using discriminatory language that leads people to judge those with disabilities, while guidelines were set forth in 2014 for the media representation of people with mental illness, it said.
The law forms the baseline for what is morally acceptable, but comedy likewise needs a baseline, it said.
Comedians must consider the effect their words might have on others, since their comments — even if they are “just a joke” — have a life beyond the moment, potentially undoing years of hard work by people trying to destigmatize some groups of people, it said.
“This is why the ethical standards are high, nothing else,” it added.
When society continues to use such labels to denigrate others, it is clear that the government needs to invest more in education and raise awareness, the association said, calling on media personalities and influencers to do their homework on offensive language, and for consumers to avoid those who peddle discrimination.
Separately, Hello (賀瓏), host of the Night Night Show with Hello, on Sunday offered an apology for a having a guest who mimicked a disabled politician on the show, saying that the guest’s behavior was wrong and promising to fully review oversight of the program.
What Wang said and how he acted during the show were not prearranged jokes provided by the production team, Hello said, while clarifying that the views and opinions expressed on the program are those of the speakers and do not reflect those of the show and its staff.
However, mimicking the movement and speech of a disabled person was “absolutely inappropriate,” he acknowledged, saying that he should have stopped Wang at the time.
The production team apologized to Chen on Wednesday last week and it appreciates Chen’s willingness to let bygones be bygones, Hello said.
Additional reporting by CNA
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
RSS