Justice, Human Rights, Free Press Continue to Erode Under Taiwan's Ma Ying-jeou

Wednesday May 06, by Jerome F. Keating Ph.D.

There is a nauseating sickness that overtakes anyone in Taiwan who has had to listen over the years to what some call "the mealy-mouthed hypocrisy" of its president, Ma Ying-jeou. While Ma tries to pretend all is well under heaven in Taiwan, Freedom House in its latest announcement has just dropped Taiwan in its global ranking to number 43 from the previous year's ranking of 32 in freedom of the press. Likewise Ma endeavors to create a police state to bolster his policies and eliminate opposing opinions.

A police state? Yes I know Ma recently called for the police to be "tolerant" of other views, but you don't drop in the rankings because of your tolerance. The police know that actions speak louder than words and that they will get promotions if they enforce Ma's wishes and not his words.

This past year we have already experienced a slew of police efforts to silence those who try to practice freedom of speech against Ma's policies. Who does not remember the brutality of the Chen Yunlin visit, the closing of Sunrise Records, the intimidation of students for speaking out criticism. I can go on and on, but pictures are worth 1000 words and videos even more. If you want visual proof, go to this blog, http://taiwanmatters.blogspot.com and look at the entries for April 29 and May 4. They will point you in the right direction and give you other links to follow up on. Wake up Taiwan, wake up world!