Taiwanese Rogue Bureaucrats Violate Tai Ji Men's Human Rights

Cupertino CA

03 August, 2021

2:17 AM

Description

On July 26, 2021, Sarah Jackson, Legislative Director for Congressman Mark DeSaulnier, met virtually with Tai Ji Men members. The purpose of the meeting is to bring Congressman DeSaulnier's attention to the Taiwan government's 24-year-long persecution of Tai Ji Men and its members, as well as to seek the Congressman's support in upholding the members' human rights. Ethan Chang, a constituent of Congressman DeSaulnier's 11th District in California, expressed his gratitude to Ms. Jackson for taking the time to learn about the Tai Ji Men case. He hopes that this case will be resolved soon, that Tai Ji Men will receive the justice it deserves, and that this type of injustice will not happen to anyone else in the world. Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy, a non-profit cultural organization, was founded in 1966 by Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze in Taiwan, with members residing in all parts of the world. Tai Ji Men's mission is to promote a holistic approach to physical, mental, and spiritual health through practice of qigong, martial arts and self-cultivation. Tai Ji Men has two branches in California, one in Los Angeles and the other in the Bay Area. Both academies have been active in their communities for more than two decades. Unfortunately, in 1996, Tai Ji Men was caught in the crossfire when the Taiwanese government pursued religious and spiritual groups for political reasons. Consequently, Tai Ji Men's grandmaster Dr. Hong, his wife, and two members were arrested and charged with fraud and tax evasion without evidence. During the meeting, an Associated Press (AP) video offered an overview of this unjust case, as well as comments from Sam Brownback and Katrina Lantos Swett, the Chairpersons of the International Religious Freedom (IRF) Summit 2021. Tai Ji Men Qigong Academy members attended the IRF Summit in Washington, D.C. to increase international awareness of the Tai Ji Men case, and to call on Taiwanese government officials to stop the persecution and return their confiscated land. Their goal is to ensure that taxation is not used as a persecution tool so that human rights would be safeguarded. Phyllis Huang, a licensed CPA in California and President of Paramitas Foundation, emphasized that on July 13, 2007, Tai Ji Men was found innocent of tax evasion and all other charges by the Taiwan Supreme Court. However, the National Taxation Bureau ignored the Supreme Court's decision and maintained the unjustified tax bills it had previously issued to Tai Ji Men. On June 17th, 2010, at a public hearing in the Legislative Yuan, the Ministry of Finance publicly agreed to resolve the Tai Ji Men tax case within two months. Unfortunately, they broke their promise. On August 21, 2020, Tai Ji Men's land to be used by its members for self-cultivation was illegally auctioned and when the auction failed, it was confiscated by the government. Jenny Hsiung, a Tai Ji Men member, addressed the two books mentioned from the video: Who Stole Their Youth? and The Tai Ji Men Case in Taiwan: The Path to Religious Liberty & Human Rights. Who Stole Their Youth? tells the stories of the individuals and families whose lives were profoundly impacted by the case. It is astonishing to see how injustice adversely affects society. The Tai Ji Men Case in Taiwan: The Path to Religious Liberty & Human Rights is a Bitter Winter anthology, which includes an analysis of the Tai Ji Men case by international scholars with expertise in human rights and religious freedom. According to these publications, the Tai Ji Men case has global implications since taxation is the most convenient and common tool that democratic governments use to deny religious or spiritual minorities their freedom of belief. Lastly, Jennifer Hung, another Tai Ji Men member, stated, "We have been the victims of human rights and belief persecution for 24 years." Jennifer urged Congressman DeSaulnier to help raise the profile of the case by bringing this case to the attention of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. In response, Ms. Jackson committed to forward any correspondence to the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission. In several separate meetings, Tai Ji Men Members have had the opportunity to present the Tai Ji Men case to the staff of other congressmen and congresswomen, who have all expressed their interest in learning more about this case of miscarried justice. Moreover, various international human rights activists have shown their support for this case, where freedom of belief was violated by a small group of Taiwanese officials for 24 years. Tai Ji Men members will continue to fight for their freedom of religion and belief until justice is served. Source: Action Alliance to Redress 1219