While Chen Shi-meng Bullies the Judiciary, Hsu Tzong-li Plays Deaf and Dumb

 While Chen Shi-meng Bullies the Judiciary, Hsu Tzong-li Plays Deaf and Dumb  

United Daily News Editorial (Taipei, Taiwan)

December 19, 2019

 Translation of an Excerpt

Chen Shi-meng, a Control Yuan member of the “Tsai Ing-wen faction” was dissatisfied that Ma Ying-jeou was found not guilty in the “secret-leaking case”, so he decided to bring in Tang Yueh, a judge at the Taipei District Court, for an interview, investigating whether she handed down judgment and sentencing in violation of law relative to "abuse of inner convictions”. To this, the Judges Association of the Republic of China issued a statement of protest, condemning that the Control Yuan member’s abuse of power aimed to open wide the doors for the "convenience of intervention in the judiciary by politics," and co-signed a letter supporting the judge to refuse the invitation for interview. When lower-level judges expressed fury over a Control Yuan member’s infringement in the judiciary, Hsu Tzong-li, President of the Judicial Yuan, remained quiet. Could it be that he acquiesced in Chen Shi-meng’s intrusion by bullying the judiciary?

For over three years, Hsu Tzong-li, with his qualifications for being renamed as Grand Justice under questioning, assumed the presidency of the Judicial Yuan; external circles originally expected that he could still show some accomplishments in the matter of "judicial reform." Who knew, in a series of "Constitutional Interpretation cases," he adopted a stance of tilting in favor of the ruling party, sitting idly by to watch politics jeopardizing the Constitution. What is even more lamentable is that the "National Affairs Conference on Judicial Reforms" chaired personally by President Tsai from the beginning, has proven to be a total flop. Hsu Tzong-li even allowed political figures to extend their hands into the judiciary, which he never safeguarded with courage and righteousness. Such kind of Judicial Yuan President is indeed a disappointment.

In accordance with principle of the "separation of five powers" in the Constitution, the Judicial Yuan and the Control Yuan are parallel organs, with separate powers and functions. If members of the judiciary violate the law and abuse power, members of the Control Yuan of course have the power to conduct investigations and censure or impeach them. Nevertheless, if members of the Control Yuan, only based on personal bias, or dissatisfaction with specific judicial cases or dissatisfaction with judgments in specific judicial cases, resort to using interviews or investigations to harass judges, it in fact constitutes oppression of and intervention in the judiciary.

In actuality, originally the DPP arbitrarily determined that former President Ma Ying-jeou's "power to mediate between various Yuan" as a "secret-leaking offence" in fact had already employed a sharp dagger of politics to pierce through the judiciary. If the DPP were truly a political party that respects the separation of the five powers, would it deliberately use such men as Chen Shi-meng to destroy the dignity of the Control Yuan? Only because President Tsai wanted to insert some disqualified people into government agencies, she proceeded to undermine the organic framework of the Examination Yuan. Would she sit idly by and watch a member of the Control Yuan intervene, with no regard for the Constitution, in individual cases of the judiciary and interview lower-level judges? Would she make an advance announcement that Su Jia-chyuan would be dismissed from his position as Legislative Speaker before the end of his term? Equally as president, Tsai Ing-wen entirely does not need the "power to mediate between various Yuan"; as far as she is concerned the five Yuan are only chess pieces in her hands.

How ugly a Control Yuan member Chen Shi-meng wants to be is his choice; however, that Hsu Tzong-li cannot safeguard the righteousness of the judges of the Judicial Yuan is a matter too sorrowful indeed!

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