Protesters hold signs reading “No Illegal Tax Bills, No Tax Negotiation, No Bonus for Tax Collection, No Enforcement Bonus, and No Reward for Tax Informants!” to demand taxpayer rights during a rally in front of the Presidential Office Building in Taipei, Taiwan, Dec. 19, 2021. (AP Images)
December 22,2021
Revealing the Serious “Tax Disaster” and Rescuing Human Rights
Tai Ji Men has been invited ten times and performed eight times in front of Taiwan’s Presidential Office Building for its National Day celebrations and was highly praised by the incumbent and three former presidents of Taiwan. On December 19, 2021, nearly ten thousand Tai Ji Men dizi (disciples) gathered in front of the Presidential Office Building, not to present amazing cultural performances, but to fight for justice and human rights at the “Wake Up to Rescue Human Rights” rally while advocating for the rectification of the Tai Ji Men case, a quarter-century-long human rights violation case. There were nine live streamers at the event, and the march along Ketagalan Boulevard was broadcast live in English and Chinese and was watched by over 150,000 people. Messages of the event were shared widely around the world. To express their anguish and anger, many people wore masks featuring “The Scream,” the famous painting by Edvard Munch. Creative presentations by representatives from all counties and cities in Taiwan expressed their five rejections of unlawful taxation, and representatives of overseas Tai Ji Men dizi from 14 countries, including the United States, Australia, and countries in Europe and Southeast Asia, as well as legislators, council members, community leaders, scholars, and human rights experts, attended the rally. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many Tai Ji Men dizi in Australia, Europe, Africa, the United States, Canada, and other parts of the world were unable to attend the event in person; instead, they tuned in to watch the live broadcast to show their support for the worthy cause.
The Tai Ji Men case originated in 1996 when prosecutor Hou Kuan-jen carried out a political purge in the name of a religious crackdown. He falsely accused Tai Ji Men of religious fraud, tax evasion, and raising goblins. After three criminal trials spanning 10 years and 3 months, Taiwan’s Supreme Court found Tai Ji Men not guilty of tax evasion or any other charges. The tax bills issued by the National Taxation Bureau (NTB) without investigation and based on the prosecutor's false indictment should have been revoked immediately, but the NTB ignored the court decision and continued to issue unlawful tax bills to Tai Ji Men. In August 2020, Tai Ji Men’s sacred land was illegally auctioned and forcibly nationalized! This case exposed the serious corruption and human rights abuses by the Taiwanese government and is considered to have global implications by many international scholars.
According to the Administrative Enforcement Agency under the Ministry of Justice, there were nearly 1.9 million cases of unpaid taxes and fees pending for enforcement in 2001, and the number of such cases rose to 14.31 million in 2020, a 7.5-fold increase in nearly 20 years. How many other people besides Tai Ji Men are suffering from unjust taxation? A film was played at the event in which tax victims from various walks of life revealed their tragic experiences about how the Ministry of Finance and the National Taxation Bureau violated their taxpayer rights by abusing their power and breaking the law.
Despite the cold, protesters wave flashlights as a symbol of ushering in a new and hopeful era where human rights prevail during a nightly rally on Ketagalan Boulevard in Taipei, Taiwan, Dec. 19, 2021. (AP Images)
Wu Pei-chun, who tried to acquire a cram school, but failed. She protested, “My purchase deal fell apart, but the NTB imposed all the unpaid tax of the seller onto me. My life is miserable. I got nowhere to seek help. I had depression, now even cancer. They still sent me the unjustified tax bill!”
Huang Wen-huang, a pro bono lawyer, who was appointed by the court as the administrator of Mr. Chang's estate following his death. Attorney Huang attested, “The National Taxation Bureau suddenly sent me unexpected tax bills totaling approximately $3.9 million because of the case. I couldn't sleep for six consecutive months, and several times I even wanted to jump off from the building. When I appealed to Deputy Finance Minister Chang Sheng-ford, to my surprise, he said, ‘If I don't impose fines on you, you will collude with the heirs.’ The heirs have run away. How could I collude with them? In addition, this case is assigned by the court following your request. Why would I collude with them? I am helping you solve the problem, but you bit the hand that fed you! What kind of mentality is this?”
Dr. L. revealed, “Following the advice of our president, I selected a patent and priced it. The capital of my company was originally $1.8 million. After I contributed the patent, the capital became NT$10.8 million. But what happened? At the end of that year, I was asked to pay approximately $5.4 million in taxes. I protested. I didn’t even sell my shares. Why taxed me? That was very unfair. I suggested using my shares as collateral. The National Taxation Bureau refused as they thought my stocks were worthless. They seized all my property, real estate, all my bank deposits and auctioned them all off, so I now have nothing.”
Ms. Lee disclosed, “'My husband and I have only one house registered under our name, and we move into it within the required period. Why do we need to pay the luxury tax? Every time we try to check with the National Taxation Bureau, they simply use various regulations to convince us to pay the tax.”
Ms. Hsiao testified, “My mother-in-law's name was Lin Wang-Yueh. When she saw this tax bill, she was shocked. My parents-in-law were honest and law-abiding people. They always pay their taxes, so she just returned the bill. But one year later, the same tax bill came back. Obviously, my mother-in-law was a lady but the Lin Wang-Yueh on the previous tax bill was a guy. This time the gender, address, and ID number were all changed to my mother-in-law's, so the taxation bureau could force her to pay.”
Mr. Chien stated, “Now I barely have faith in this government. The Ministry of Finance’s cruelty, evil and illegality are the scariest things. For the survival of the people of Taiwan, I must fight for the reform of the Ministry of Finance. My son will continue to fight when I die, and my grandson will continue to fight when my son dies.”
Protesters, wearing masks that feature “The Scream,” make hand gestures, saying no to illegal tax bills during a march in Taipei, Taiwan, Dec. 19, 2021. (AP Images)
As many tax bills issued by the National Taxation Bureau are unjustified, the event organizers encouraged everyone to say no to unjust taxation and demand taxpayer rights. They led over ten thousand participants to shout five demands: “No Illegal Tax Bills!” “No Tax Negotiation!” “No Bonus for Tax Collection!” “No Enforcement Bonus!” and “No Reward for Tax Informants!” They hope to raise public awareness of taxpayer rights and call on the government to address the serious harm done to the country by the problematic legal and tax practices.
Experiencing the tax disaster firsthand and seeing others’ pain, Tai Ji Men dizi insist on doing the right thing with courage and upholding the truth, justice and human rights. On this special occasion, Tzu-Gang Peng, on behalf of worldwide Tai Ji Men dizi, read a joint statement, emphasizing, “For the past 25 years, Tai Ji Men’s Shifu and dizi have never stopped spreading love, conscience, and peace around the world. We have traveled to over 100 nations on six continents. As practitioners of self-cultivation, we insist on upholding the truth and never compromise. We have been dedicated to legal and tax reform and conscience education in Taiwan, out of love for our country and the world. Filled with conscience, Tai Ji Men’s Shifu and dizi have insisted on doing the right thing and sincerely wish for a better country every step of the way.”
“We solemnly demand that the Taiwanese government truly implement transitional justice, remove the legacy of the authoritarian era, immediately stop human rights abuses, immediately stop violating the people’s religious freedom, return Tai Ji Men’s sacred land, clear Tai Ji Men’s name, and return justice to Tai Ji Men,” added Peng.
Peng concluded, “There will be no peace without human rights, and there will be no prosperity without peace. Tai Ji Men dizi follow the guidance of their conscience and are committed to safeguarding the truth with conscience and awakening justice with their true hearts, as well as vow to defend human rights with their lives.”