Legislative Review: Absolutely Necessary!

Legislative Review: Absolutely Necessary!
United Daily News editorial editorial (Taipei, Taiwan, ROC)
A Translation
April 27, 2010

Confronted by a massive wave of opposition, the Legislative Yuan postponed its third reading on the "Personal Information Protection Act." It reverted to a second reading of the bill, subjecting it to review, and amending those provisions that stifle freedom of the press. This is the only way to prevent this bill from becoming law -- bad law. There is no other way.

If legislators still do not realize the gravity of the situation, and insist on a third reading, then the Executive Yuan will be forced to veto it. This will waste time. It will also leave behind an embarrassing record of a KMT-ruled Executive Yuan vetoing legislation passed by a Legislative Yuan with a KMT absolute majority.

In the name of "protecting personal privacy," the KMT-dominated legislature has created a huge pitfall for freedom of the press and online freedom of expression. Promoters of the "Personal Information Protection Act" set their sights too high, even as they resorted to methods too underhanded. Ironically, until the ruling and opposition parties subjected it to joint review, many legislators still did not realize what was wrong with the bill. All they could do was to consult with the Executive Yuan. This scenario accurately reflects the abysmal quality of proceedings in the Legislative Yuan.

Last Tuesday, during the second reading, the Legislative Yuan passed 17 bills in a single breath. The legislature resembled an auction house. It reverberated with the sounds of auctioneering, bidding, and gavel banging. Was anyone giving serious consideration to the impact of these bills on society and the public? Some Blue Camp legislators proposed that elected representatives be exempt from the law. But when their colleagues reprimanded them, they jettisoned exemptions for the media as well. Green Camp legislators initially expressed vehement opposition to the "Chiu Yi Clause." They were concerned only with blocking it, and ignored all other considerations. The result was ruling and opposition legislators colluded in suppressing freedom of the press in the Republic of China, then reveled in the fact they had exempted themselves from their own laws.

The Ministry of Justice behaved barbarically, acted hastily, and shirked responsibility, in a manner that left onlookers aghast. During interpolation in the legislature, the Ministry of Justice held a public hearing. It invited representatives of impacted industries to participate. Among the broadcast media it invited only one Green oriented media organization. This bill has far ranging implications. Yet the public hearing was so flagrantly lopsided and biased. How can it possibly win the public trust? How can it possibly represent the views of the media as a whole? How can a meeting shot through and through with such selectivity, "heed the voice of the people?"

Even more frightening was the "media exemption" clause included in the Ministry of Justice's original draft. During the public hearing, the "Taiwan Rights Committee" advocated "equal treatment." The result? Media exemption was eliminated in one fell swoop. The entire process was truly mind-boggling. The news media is the Fourth Estate. This is true the world over. How can it be compared to the credit industry, the securities industry, or the banking industry? That a human rights group would harbor such a deep bias against the media, staggers the mind. The Ministry of Justice lost sight of its duties. It failed to assert itself before the fact. It shirked its responsibility after the fact. It demeaned its own role as the foremost legal authority in the nation.

The executive and legislature behaved rashly. They created an stumbling block with the "Personal Information Protection Act." The act abrogates freedom of the press. It turns ordinary netizens into lawbreakers. Abuses of privacy occur mainly when large corporations misuse or leak information about individuals stored in their databases. While dealing with these, the executive and judiciary have revealed just how embarrassingly incompetent they are. According to the new law, the government's dragnet will be tight. Whether it can catch information thieves is unknown. But people will post group photos of students in Facebook. People will post photos of Spring Scream concerts in Kenting in their personal blogs. These photos may not have received the "consent" of every person in them. The poster may be charged with violating other peoples' privacy. Endless disputes may arise. Will the executive and the judiciary have the time and manpower to cope with them? If not, won't this law be meaningless?

To violate freedom of the press in order to protect peoples' privacy, is an example of intellectual confusion. It is uncalled for. It is not worthwhile. If one casts a dragnet, but fails to catch real criminals, but instead inadvertently catchs young netizens in the trap, one's good intentions will wind up as social harassment. Worse still, if this giant dragnet becomes a magic cape that protects corrupt officials and profiteers, while binding investigative journalists who expose corruption hand and feet, who will be the beneficiaries?

Ruling and opposition party legislators are now willing to conduct a joint review. This shows they realize the seriousness of the problem. Ruling and opposition party legislators created this mess. Ruling and opposition party legislators must clean it up. They are not merely salvaging the Personal Information Protection Act. They are also salvaging their personal images. Last Friday the ruling and opposition parties discussed how they would review the Personal Information Act. Green Camp legislator Liv Wong flat out refused. Business taxes nearly became collateral damage, and had to undergo emergency review. How can legislators not feel ashamed about their performance?

復議，復議，非復議不可！
【聯合報╱社論】
2010.04.27 03:03 am

在巨大的反對聲浪下，立法院暫緩「個人資料保護法」的三讀，並決定以「復議」方式將法案退回二讀，對扼殺新聞自由的相關條文重新修正。這恐怕是拯救這部法案免於淪為「惡法」的唯一途徑，捨此之外，別無他途。

除非立委仍不明白此事之嚴重性，堅持要將法案依原樣付諸三讀；那麼，屆時勢必要由行政院提起「覆議」。如此，不僅曠日廢時，還將留下一筆國民黨主政的行政院對國民黨佔絕對多數的立法院覆議的難堪紀錄。

打著「保護個人隱私」的大旗，卻對新聞自由與個人網路行為布下漫天巨網和匝地陷阱，「個資法」只能說是眼太高而手太低。可笑的是，直至朝野決定聯合提出復議，許多立委仍弄不清法案到底什麼地方出了問題，只能回頭找行政部門共商大計。這種景象，其實真切地反映了立法院一向的議事品質。

上周二讀那天，立法院會一口氣通過了十七個法案，大賣場般的不斷宣讀、喊價、落槌，誰會認真思考手上法條對社會、對民眾有何影響？原來主張民代免責的藍軍立委，因受同僚指摘，卻連媒體的免責權也棄而不顧；原來強力反對「邱毅條款」的綠營立委，則一心一意只在阻擋，無心關注其他。就這樣，朝野立委聯手封殺台灣的新聞自由，還洋洋得意於自己保護個資的「成就」。

法務部的粗疏、草率和卸責，同樣讓人不忍卒睹。在立法徵詢過程中，法務部舉辦的公聽會，邀了諸多相關業者與會，其中傳媒業竟只邀請了一家綠色媒體與會。一個涉及廣泛的法案，公聽會竟然作如此單一、偏頗的安排，如何能昭公信？又豈能代表整體媒體的意見？而一場充滿選擇性思維的會議，又如何達到「聆聽公意」的目的？

更可怕的是，法務部原提的草案中列有「媒體免責」的條款，竟因「台權會」在公聽會中主張要「一視同仁」，就一刀把媒體的免責權給斬掉了，這真是難以想像的事。新聞媒體是第四權，舉世皆然，如何和徵信業、證券或銀行業相提並論？一個人權團體卻對媒體存有如此深的偏見，實在令人瞠目結舌；而法務部自身本末不分，事前不能據理力爭，事後又一味推諉卸責，未免把法務主管機關的大責任做小了。

由於行政與立法部門的草率，「個資法」所設下的阻障，不僅侵犯了新聞自由，也將使個人電腦使用者在網路上動輒可能觸法。試想，目前個人資料遭侵犯的問題，主要發生在握有大宗個戶資料的企業管理失當，因而遭到濫用或洩露；對付這些，行政及司法機關都已技窮力絀，窘態畢露。若依新的個資法，政府把管制的羅網編織得那麼細密，能不能抓到個資大盜還未可知；但民眾在「臉書」放上同學會合照，或者在個人部落格張貼墾丁春吶音樂會圖片，都可能因「未徵求同意」而被控侵權。對可能源源不絕的糾紛，行政及司法部門有足夠的人力和時間應付嗎？如果不能，那麼此法豈非將形同虛設？

為了保障民眾個人隱私，把新聞自由也一起賠進去，完全是思維錯亂所致，不僅毫無必要，更是不值得。而如果佈下天羅地網，抓不到真正的刁鑽歹徒，反讓年輕網民動輒誤觸陷阱，這個法案的美意將變成可怕的社會騷擾。更何況，如果這張巨網最後變成了保護貪官汙吏或奸商惡徒的金鐘罩，媒體工作者的揭弊報導遭綑手縛腳，那又便宜了誰？

朝野立委願意聯合提出復議，顯示他們意識到問題的嚴重性。朝野立委共同捅出的婁子，朝野立委共同出面收拾，這不只是在搶救個資法，也在搶救立委自己的形象。上周五，就在朝野共商個資法如何復議之際，綠委翁金珠一聲無厘頭的「反對」，讓營所稅險遭錯殺，只好也緊急動用「復議」搶救。這樣的立法品質，立委能不汗顏？