The Control Yuan (CY) formed a taskforce on January 20, 2014, to develop measures reaffirming its role as a national human rights institution. The taskforce will invite esteemed members of the society to discuss whether to rebrand the CY as a hybrid ombudsman and human rights institution without disrupting the separation of power under the current five-branch government, or to establish a separate national human rights commission subsumed under the CY, in a manner similar to the National Audit Office. A decision on the issue is to be expected to be finalized by the second half of this year.
The CY is the supervisory branch among the five government branches in Taiwan, the Republic of China (ROC), as well as a member of the International Ombudsman Institute since 1994. Like many traditional ombudsmen with the power to pursue administrative justice, good governance, accountability and anti-corruption, the CY has been influential in protecting human rights. About 1,429 (56%) of the 2,555 investigations completed since the start of the fourth CY from August 2008 through December 2013 involved human rights violations.
Since ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR)) in 2009 and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 2012, Taiwan has steadily brought its laws into conformance with international human rights norms. However, as the government is often found to be directly or indirectly involved in many human rights violations, more action is needed in terms of human rights monitoring mechanism.
In fact, actions to promote Taiwan’s conformity to international human rights norms began as early as 2000, when a group of 22 non-governmental organizations formed the Alliance for the Establishment of National Human Rights Institution. The alliance called on the government to establish a national human rights body that conforms to the 1993 Paris Principles. In 2012, the Office of the President launched a taskforce to deliberate the establishment of a standalone national human rights institution. The CY’s delegates also attended consultation sessions at the Office of the President to engage with representatives from different sectors.