Concerning ongoing legal rights violations at National Cheng Kung
University
Date:
Sat, 30 Aug 2003 09:30:00 +0800
To:
moe
Ministry of Education
Department of Higher Education
30 August 2003
Dear Ministry of Education and Department of Higher Education Officials:
I appeal to you in the strongest terms to effect the dismissal from office
of Professor Kao
Chiang, currently acting as president of National Cheng Kung University.
Professor Kao defied a legal Ministry of Education ruling for more than
two years. This
alone should be enough to subject him to removal. Apart from issues of
academic ethics, a
public official who defies a Ministry ruling and who remains in office
undermines confidence in
law among all citizens.
Moreover, despite the Ministry ruling of 8 January 2001, Professor Kao
allowed a
so-called university "review" of accusations already rejected in the
Ministry ruling, which
undermines the legal effect of that ruling, against the legal rights
protections of a final appeal.
But in addition, Professor Kao, either with the indifference or
encouragement of his legal
counsel, continues to delay and obstruct the full resolution of the
Ministry of Education appeal
ruling of 8 January 2001. The International Charter of Human Rights
requires full
compensation for human rights violations. There are laws insuring such
compensation in
democratic countries.
Yet Kao Chiang's administration continues to obstruct compensation and
effect final
resolution of the Ministry ruling of 8 January 2001. Recently, I received a
notice from the
university that I was not entitled to such compensation, citing the
Employment Law, even
though both the Minsitry of Education and a Tainan court ruled that all
teachers were protected
by the Teachers Law.
An official who continues to act in violation of laws, despite numerous
warnings, is
obstructing justice. This is a serious offense and, in a lawful society,
should not be tolerated.
Yesterday, I filed still another lawsuit against the university, for
full compensation. Yet a
lawful society governs its institutions by laws, not by litigation.
Continued litigation of these
issues, replacing automatic execution by law, will only undermine the
repuation of National
Cheng Kung University as well as of Taiwan as a nation of laws.
Therefore I urge the Ministry of Education to take prompt action as
requested.
Sincerely,
Professor Richard de Canio
Department of Foreign Languages and Literature
National Cheng Kung University
Tainan, Taiwan
(06) 237 8626
