A heartfelt appeal to Taiwan from a California-based lawyer who is also licensed in Taiwan
The International Day of Human Fraternity is observed on February 4. The Action Alliance to Redress 1219, the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), and Human Rights Without Frontiers collaborated to host an international forum, under the theme of “The Call to Fraternity and the Tai Ji Men Case,” on February 5, 2022 at Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy in Los Angeles, with Tai Ji Men members and other visionaries from around the world attending the event in person or online.
A total of six Tai Ji Men dizi (disciples) from all walks of life around the world shared their views on the Tai Ji Men case, including Ann Chen of Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy in Los Angeles, who gave an insightful and thought-provoking speech. Below is the transcript of her speech:
Hello, my name is Ann Chen, and I am a lawyer in Taiwan and California. In December 2021, the U.S. hosted its first Summit for Democracy, inviting leaders and representatives from more than 100 democracies around the world to discuss three main themes: preventing authoritarianism, fighting corruption, and promoting human rights. Taiwan was invited to participate in the Summit and made 62 specific commitments to echo the U.S. Summit for Democracy, the most noteworthy of which was to jointly promote international religious freedom and human rights.
However, the current situation in Taiwan is going in the opposite direction of what it promised to do. According to the Ministry of Justice, there were 14.31 million new cases of unpaid taxes and government fees pending enforcement in 2020, and Taiwan’s Ministry of Finance estimated that the over-collected taxes would exceed $400 billion (approximately US$14.38 billion) in 2021. Over the past eight years, the over-collected taxes have reached more than $1.0743 trillion (approximately US$38.6 billion). The government argues that the over-collected taxes are to repay the national debt, but in reality, the problems behind the over-collection of taxes reflect the infringement of people’s property rights by public power. There are many cases of unjust taxation. The tax officials’ pursuit of illegal bonuses and the failure of the tax relief system have led to a variety of tax chaos, causing Taiwan’s tax disaster, a sharp increase in the number of tax slaves, an increase in the national debt instead of a decrease, and the suffering of the people. The Tai Ji Men case, which scholars and experts referred to as the “magical mirror reflecting Taiwan’s legal and tax systems,” is a landmark case where the Taiwanese government has used unjust tax measures to violate the people’s religious freedom and human rights. The case has lasted for a quarter of a century, and Tai Ji Men still has not received the justice it deserves. This case has become a major blemish in Taiwan’s human rights record in the 21st century, seriously damaging the reputation of the democratic camp.
On July 13, 2007, Taiwan’s Supreme Court already ruled that Tai Ji Men was not guilty of all charges and did not owe taxes, and all the defendants that were detained had received compensation from the state for their wrongful imprisonment. According to the law, Taiwan’s National Taxation Bureau should have taken the initiative to revoke the illegal tax bill. If administrative officials are allowed to say that the court’s decision does not count, then can Taiwan be called a country under the rule of law? Shih Yueh-sheng, the tax officer that accused Tai Ji Men of tax evasion, made a confession before his death in a recorded interview. The video was revealed by the media in August 2021, in which the tax collector Shih Yueh-sheng said that he was cooperating with the prosecutor to make a show. He said that the case should not be handled this way and that he had to wait for evidence, but no one listened to him. A fabricated case has turned into a human rights violation case where Tai Ji Men’s sacred land was forcibly taken away by the government. Now that the truth is out in the open, if the government still turns a blind eye to it and allows the case to remain unresolved, then it seriously harms Taiwan and its people. That is a violation of the constitution, a human rights abuse, and an infringement of the freedom of religion or belief explicitly guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the ICCPR and the ICESCR, depriving people of the right to choose their cultural life, the right to equality without discrimination, and the right to effective relief. This has wasted countless public funds, administrative resources, judicial resources, and incurred huge social costs. If the government does not immediately rectify the Tai Ji Men case, referred to as “Legal and Tax 228,” how can the “transitional justice” be realized? How can it advocate for human rights at the Summit for Democracy?
In January of this year alone, there were two shocking suicide cases in Taiwan: three people hanged themselves in Puli because of judicial injustice. The mother of one of the deceased blamed the prosecution, saying, “No justice! No justice! No justice!” Six days later, former legislator Pang Chien-kuo fell to his death, leaving behind these words before he passed away: “There is no justice in Taiwan; I’d rather die than live on! There is no justice in Taiwan; I’d rather die than live on! There is no justice in Taiwan; I’d rather die than live on!” On January 29, Hsieh Chih-hung, who had been sentenced to death nine times and detained for 6,834 days, finally received NT$34.17 million (approximately US$1.23 million) in compensation for his wrongful imprisonment. However, the 20 years of litigation, the damage to his property, the mental anguish, and the damage to his reputation during this period cannot be compensated by money. The officials who violated the law have not been punished, prosecuted or sentenced, and the tens of millions of dollars that he received in compensation for wrongful imprisonment will be paid by the people. How many more people have to suffer because there is no justice in Taiwan? Every Taiwanese is a victim.
In 2018, the United Nations General Assembly declared January 24 as International Day of Education, and in 2019, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution entitled “Promoting the Culture of Peace with Love and Conscience,” declaring April 5 as the International Day of Conscience. In 2020, the UN General Assembly declared February 4 as International Day of Human Fraternity. It is significant to global peace and human rights that these three days were adopted one after another. The core value of education is to inspire the innate goodness in people and their self-awareness, and tolerance, mutual respect, and diversity of religions and beliefs can promote human fraternity. Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze has been promoting the movement of “An Era of Conscience” since 2014, and he has led his disciples to visit 101 countries to spread love and goodness. Conscience is the guideline to save the world. If government officials follow their conscience, they will protect human rights and work for the well-being of the people and society. The more global citizens that have their conscience awakened, the safer our living environment will be.
Taiwan is my hometown, my family and friends live there. Religious freedom and human rights are universal values and the fundamental dignity that every human being should enjoy. Once again, I urge the Taiwanese government to immediately rectify the Tai Ji Men case, clear the names of Tai Ji Men’s shifu and disciples, return justice to them, return Tai Ji Men’s sacred land, and stop persecuting Tai Ji Men, so that Tai Ji Men’s Shifu and disciples can continue their practice and continue to spread the culture of love and peace around the world while improving global citizens’ physical, mental, and spiritual health, purifying people’s hearts, and enhancing the wellbeing of all.
Ann Chen, a Tai Ji Men dizi (disciple) and dual-licensed attorney in California and Taiwan, far left, gave an insightful speech under the theme of “The Call to Fraternity and the Tai Ji Men Case” in honor of the International Day of Human Fraternity (Feb. 4).