The Theory and Practice of Public Forum: A Critical Analysis on Taiwan Experience

• Main Authors: Huang, Tzu-Chiang, 黃自強
• Other Authors: Chen, Wen-Cheng
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2016
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/x95twe

博士 === 國立臺灣師範大學 === 政治學研究所 === 104 === “Public Forum” is a place that can be used for the expression of the public affairs. Traditionally, streets and parks have been widely described as pathways for the purpose of communication. In light of these concerns, the U.S. Supreme Court has gradually built up “Public Forum Doctrine” by judicial review into the ruling since 1930s. That doctrine empowers people to access the government property to exercise the First Amendment right to freedom of speech under the US constitution. Over the past decades, the doctrine has paved the way for the prospect of diverse opinion as speaker and audience in terms of public affairs, but also has come to realize that its relationship isinextricably boundtogether in conducting democratic development. For mentioned above, the doctrine can significantly heighten three major positive advantages in promoting participatory democracy and protecting the right of free speech, as well as raising political culture. Thus, this study aims to use the doctrine as a basis for further interpreting and inspecting the development of public forum in Taiwan during the period from 1987 to 2016. More specifically, that will know more about the achievements and challenges for the country’s democratic transition and its consolidation. From the perspective of system theory, Taiwan’s Constitution Court indeed keeps an arbitrator in proposing a framework for public forum. Take participatory democracy as an example, Justice has made the interpretation of Article 445, 718 and 734. Additionall, Justice has also made the interpretation of Article 509, 656 and 689. The above three interpretations have highlighted Justice used the “actual malice principle” to protect the right of free speech. However, from the perspective of substantial impact, Taiwan’s public forum still faces challenges. First, the most significant factor is police and its law enforcement characters even if the energy of participatory democracy is booming by dint of numbers of parades and vibrant attendees passion around the country. Second, with the lifting of martial law and opening the ban of media, the right of free speech in Taiwan has made a great progress in the past decades. That also promotes the diverse speech but disorder, simultaneously. Third, Taiwan media coverage is not capable of finding the truth behind the scene due to the ideology and negative pundit culture. That is the reason why the media is fault to producing positive effect of media dependency, building the trust and its network, and operation better function of political culture. The major findings suggest that the island’s public forum faces seven challenges in the present, such as “public forum interpreted by Justice” “obvious plight in public forum”, “government speech threatening”, “the crisis of media manipulation”, “media without self-disciple discipline”, “social capital falling into dilemma” and “assessing democratic quality not in terms of the quantity of forums”. The results of the study may also propose six solutions to be a healthy public forum. The main steps include: “fostering judges' constitution consciousness”, “changing the attitude of controlling manner among policemen”, “maintaining the healthy market of speech”, “enacting the media anti-manipulation law”, “updating media accomplishment and its culture” and “promoting social capital by strengthening the effect of media dependency”.