American Citizens for Taiwan has issued a call for respect of human rights in Taiwan following the recent revelation that imprisoned Chen Shui-bian was drugged without his knowledge by the exiled Republic of China government he once led.
ACT spokesman Lawrence Lin has issued a statement over the disclosure that Chen Shui-bian had been administered the mind-altering lorazepan or Ativan without his knowledge. Taiwan news reports are that Chen was given a low dosage of the potentially addictive tranquilizer for 14 months. The secret drugging was discovered by cardiologists currently treating Chen whose health has suffered in prison.
Lin told Examiner: “American Citizens for Taiwan strongly opposes any state sanctioned treatment of both accused and convicted persons of all nationalities that runs counter to internationally accepted norms and guidelines, including the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
The Formosa Association for Public Affairs director Mark Kao has called Chen Shui-bian’s treatment in prison “inhumane” and has called on FAPA members to petition Congress to intervene on Chen’s behalf.
The Taiwan Civil Rights Litigation Organization has called for medical release for Chen Shui-bian to house arrest until a new trial can be granted. Chen’s trial, after he left office, for so-called “soft money” corruption was controversial and drew international criticism at the time. Chen received a lengthy prison term which has kept him confined to a small cell for long periods.
The mission of the American Citizens for Taiwan group is to obtain self-determination for the Taiwanese people now trapped in an unresolved status that the District of Columbia U.S. Court of Appeals has called “political purgatory” in a 2009 court decision
“ACT strives for a U.S. Government position on Taiwan that is fully supportive of Taiwan’s right to self-determination via referendum by all Taiwanese without external threat or interference.”
Taiwan has been caught in a 67 year-old strategic ambiguity that makes it the home of an exiled Chinese government and barred from membership in the United Nations or World Health Organization. Taiwan, also called Formosa, is under official occupation by the United States under terms of the San Francisco Peace Treaty that ended World War II with Japan. The ROC was allowed by the United States to seek refuge on the island as a consequence of the Cold War to contain the spread of Red China.
Because of the exiled Kuomintang government in control of the island, the People’s Republic of China has made territorial claims on Taiwan under a “one China” doctrine. Also, as a consequence of Taiwan’s unique political history, human rights on the island have often suffered under Chinese authority.
Meanwhile, Chen Shui-bian remains confined to his cell counting the days of his imprisonment.
Source: Michael Richardson - Boston Progressive Examiner
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