By Liu Ching-yi 劉靜怡( professor in the College of Social Sciences at National Taiwan University, Board Member of Taiwan Association for Human Rigths) Translated by Paul Cooper 8th June 2014 Taipei Times The Council of Grand Justices’ Constitutional Interpretation No. 603 puts it clearly: “Where it is necessary for the state to … set up databases … for the purposes of any particular major public interest, it shall not only prescribe by law the purposes of such collection, which shall be necessary and relevant to the achievement of the purposes of such major public interest, but also prohibit by law any…

Group blasts fingerprinting plan as anti-human rights2012/01/02 21:39:28 Taipei, Jan. 2 (CNA) Taiwan’s new plan requiring migrant workers from four Southeast Asian countries submit fingerprint records as part of their Taiwan visa applications was criticized as being “discriminatory” by a rights group on Monday. The Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR) blasted the plan, announced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) late last year, as being a sheer violation of human rights and running counter to the spirit of the two major United Nations human rights agreements that President Ma Ying-jeou signed into law in May 2009. The new…

本文原為2011年5月10日，本會投書蘋果日報”應立法規範個資大怪獸—聯合徵信中心“一文，後經同意英文台北時報翻譯後，登載在2011年5月16日Taipei Times By Lai Chung-chiang and Chiu E-ling 賴中強，邱伊翎(Lai Chung-chiang is deputy president of the Taiwan Association for Human Rights. Chiu E-ling is the director of media and publication for the association.) TRANSLATED BY JULIAN CLEGG Following the signing of agreements with China about financial cooperation across the Taiwan Strait, Chinese financial concerns have been eagerly seeking ways to start up and develop business operations in Taiwan. The Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) has so far given its approval for four major Chinese banks — the Bank of China, Bank of Communications, China Construction Bank and China Merchants Bank — to…

No change in ID card fee: MOI By Loa Iok-sin / STAFF REPORTERTue, Sep 28, 2010 – Page 2 Despite complaints from the public about the need to pay a fee every time anyone changes their address on the national ID card, the Ministry of the Interior yesterday said it was unlikely to change the format of the ID cards at the moment, but did not rule out making changes at some point in the future. Deputy Minister of the Interior Chien Tai-lang (簡太郎) was responding to complaints over having to pay NT$50 to obtain a new national ID card…

Groups decry revision of data actBy Loa Iok-sinTaipei Times, Thursday, Apr 29, 2010, Page 3 “We regret that the revised law, which has sparked many controversies, was not fully discussed by the public and was hastily passed.”— Taiwan Association for Human Rights The Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR) and the Association of Taiwan Journalists (ATJ) yesterday expressed their regrets over the revision of the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法), saying the revision was passed too hastily and without a thorough public discussion. The legislature adopted an amendment to the Computer- Processed Personal Data Protection Act (電腦保護個人資料處理法) on Tuesday, changing…

By Chiu E-ling and Liu Ching-yi 邱伊翎，劉靜怡 Wednesday, Apr 22, 2009, Page 8, Taipei Times Recent newspaper reports have revealed that the National Police Agency plans to build “electronic city walls” throughout Taiwan by installing surveillance cameras nationwide over the next five years. The Ministry of the Interior has also launched a NT$1 billion (US$29.5 million) project to integrate surveillance camera systems, and Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) announced on April 8 that his government would spend NT$1.6 billion to install 13,000 “intelligent,” high-performance cameras in the city.

This article was on Liberty Times Opinion 10 March, 2009. Here it is in its original length. As we are becoming more accustomed to the revelations, by the media of personal or private information which appear to pertain to “public interest” but never are the case, our Legislators, in the name of “public interest”, acting as upholders of justice while revealing personal information to the media, with often false sources unidentified or without prior notification or consent of the individuals. Existing practices do not provide legitimacy of the purpose itself; however, the Legislative Yuan is working on legalizing these practices.…