TTL files libel suit over ‘murderer’accusation from foundation,doctor( China Post )
發佈日期： 2013-11-20
TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Union representatives of the Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor Corporation (TTL, 台灣菸酒公司) yesterday filed a lawsuit against the John Tung Foundation (JTF, 董氏基金會) and an anti-tobacco physician, Hsueh Kuang-chien (薛光傑), for allegedly damaging their reputation.
TTL representatives claim that Hsueh posted an article on the JTF blog titled: “Even the mass murder-committing Tobacco Company can’t stand the government’s ignorance to food security.” Hsueh, who serves as the manager of the blog, included a photo of TTL Director-General Chao Ming-yuan (趙銘圓) in the article.
The article refers to a visit by members of the TTL labor union to the Control Yuan to criticize the government for ignoring food security issues while focusing on tobacco tax hikes, said Chen Mu-yen (陳木炎), secretary-general of the TTL union.
Chen claimed that Hsueh referred to Chao as a murderer deliberately, which is considered libel, and therefore punishable under the law. TTL members went to the Taipei District Court yesterday, accusing Hsueh as well as the JTF of damaging their reputation and illegally using Chao’s likeness.
The JTF stated that there are an estimated 6 billions people dying from smoking every year worldwide, with around 20,000 in Taiwan suffering from smoking-related illnesses. The term “murder-committing” is not so inappropriate based on the figure, according to the foundation.
JTF Tobacco Hazard Prevention Department Director Lin Ching-li (林清麗) noted that Hsueh is a good physician who has prevented many teenagers from smoking. The accusation from TTL is simply forcing a good doctor to waste his time in a courtroom, the director said.
