Offensive statements in student campaign proposals cause uproar at National Taiwan University

學生競選政見中的攻擊性言論在台大引起軒然大波

Students outraged at discriminatory, sexist proposals from two students running for student council


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Controversy erupted at National Taiwan University (NTU) on Saturday (May 20) after sexist and discriminatory statements were found on an online bulletin ahead of student council elections.

The election commission included a “trigger warning” for students reading the bulletin and declared that the text was discriminatory and “extremely inappropriate." The language in question was a series of proposals by two candidates running together for president and vice president of the NTU Economics Department’s student council, reported UDN.

The offensive remarks included calls to limit the university’s quota for “indigenous students, overseas Chinese students, and athletes.” The statement comes at a sensitive time as the NTU Student Association is hosting various events for "Free Speech Month" in May.

On Friday (May 19), protestors and counter-protestors were on campus expressing their views on enrollment policies toward indigenous Taiwanese students, reported SETN. Some claim that indigenous students get preferential treatment and face less strict standards, while others assert that indigenous students are discriminated against and deserve more support from the university.

The students running for office listed 16 sexist and discriminatory proposals for their campaign platform, such as “Girls with less than an A-cup will be required to take two credit hours of national defense training courses,” “Girls should be required to wear high school uniforms in calculus classes," “LGBTQ students and dogs must not play Arena of Valor (a smartphone game) during student council meetings,” and “Elevators should require ID card access, and students with a BMI of 20 or higher will not be permitted to use them.”

Other inappropriate statements included “Graduating guys who are still single should receive vasectomies,” “New students will stay in mixed dorms," and “Male students who are virgins may not attend school dances; Female students who are virgins are required to attend.”

The campaign proposals drew instant criticism on Facebook, with student groups demanding the statements be deleted. The two candidates have since apologized for their statements, which they intended to be humorous.

On Sunday, the students responsible expressed their “deepest apologies” on the NTU Student Exchange Facebook page. They said that although it is too late for them to withdraw from the elections, they accept responsibility for their immature attitude and behavior, reported UDN.

NTU released a statement clarifying that student elections are all managed by students in respective departments, with minimal oversight from the university. The university as well as the Department of Economics stated that they support the principles of student self-government and value free speech, but that the comments in question showed a disregard for human rights and gender equality.

CNA reported that an internal commission of the Department of Economics on gender equality will investigate the incident. The department is also expected to provide counseling for students to establish a space for further discussion on issues of equality and mutual respect.