Taiwan Human Rights Report 2000

During the year 2000 human rights issues moved to the top of the political agenda in Taiwan. The new government, which took office in May, made several proclamations of human rights policies, including launching official human rights programs and addressing several civil rights cases. In the society as a whole, dialogues are beginning on social, economic, and cultural rights, in addition to political rights. It seems that, suddenly, human rights discourse has become popular all over Taiwan.

However, such a "high profile" for human rights issues has nothing to do with whether Taiwan has maintained a good standard of human rights protection; rather, it only exposes the low awareness and lack of mechanisms available to protect basic rights in the past. Due to dictatorial leadership and international isolation, Taiwan has been left behind by the world's human rights movement in the last half-century. Although the new government has promised to incorporate human rights ideology into its policies, we have not yet seen much change from the old administration, only some verbal declarations and ceremonial rituals in the name of human rights. The real test for the new government is to create a long-term strategy and mechanism to redress past violations of human rights, prevent further violations, consolidate human rights education to promote awareness, and develop linkages with the international human rights movement.

As professional advocates for human rights, our responsibilities are threefold: to lay down standards for human rights protection, to monitor the government's human rights policies, and to work to realize human rights ideals. The Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR) has, for a long time, combined work on individual cases with the general promotion of human rights awareness. It monitors and keeps track of cases of human rights violations and expands the understanding of human rights protection. Our association's five-year campaign for the Hsichih Trio has finally helped to bring about a retrial. Our advocacy for the creation of a National Human Rights Commission was not only recognized by the new president, but also won widespread support from the community. The positive response we have received from all sectors of the Taiwanese society shows that NGOs can be driving force behind social change. Our annual Human Rights Report is a critical reference guide designed to give a fuller understanding of the current situation in Taiwan, and as well as to point toward future action. The Report is a comprehensive, honest reflection of the human rights conditions over the past year and it can help readers to identify the areas of concern in each aspect of human rights issues, the progress made, and the reasons for such progress. In addition, it explores new human rights topics to assist in the overall evaluation of Taiwan's human rights situation and strategic planning of the human rights movement in Taiwan.