Education minister, school defend student's controversial art

Taipei, Dec. 16 (CNA) Minister of Education Pan Wen-chung (潘文忠) voiced support on Friday for a student who drew an award-winning comic that had come under criticism for not taking the issue of pedestrian safety seriously, the same day that the student's school restored a congratulatory Facebook post.

Pan told the press on Friday that the ministry will continue to support student creativity, adding that this type of work should be encouraged and that competition regulations are only there to penalize plagiarized work.

Meanwhile, the student's school reposted a congratulatory Facebook post on Friday that had been deleted to recognize the value of his work, principal Lin Chi-wen (林祺文) told CNA, adding that the school had never blamed him for what had ensued.

The piece of work in question was drawn by a junior high school student in Taoyuan. It was entitled "Emperor's Clause" (帝王條款) and depicts an emperor sauntering across the street, pulling a pet tortoise on a leash, while frustrated drivers wait and honk their horns.

After winning an excellence award in the National Student Art Competition, the student's school posted the art on Facebook along with a message to congratulate him. However, it came under fierce attack by those who perceived it as being critical of recent policies to protect pedestrians.

Taiwan's Ministry of Transportation and Communications has recently implemented regulations in a bid to ensure pedestrian safety, including raising fines for those who fail to yield to pedestrians, and it was believed to be this "emperor's clause" depicted in the student's art.

Under Taiwan's traffic rules, pedestrians are exempt from punishment in the event of an accident, colloquially known as the "emperor's clause" for pedestrians, except if they violate traffic signals when crossing the road or if they cross without using the designated crossing.

Some pedestrian rights advocates accused the school of being negligent in its duty to teach students about the importance of pedestrian safety.

In response, the school on Tuesday deleted the Facebook post and issued an apology, while others continued to back the student on the grounds of freedom of speech.

The student simply created art based on a term he had seen in the media, and based on his belief that pedestrians and drivers should respect each other, Lin told CNA on Tuesday.