Cultural Diversity and Tax Justice: The Tai Ji Men Case

“Culture is the flower of the human being — the fruit of our minds, the product of our traditions, the expression of our yearnings,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres in honor of World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development on May 21, 2021, adding, “Its diversity is wondrous, part of the rich tapestry of civilization. Culture is also a powerhouse — an employer of millions, an engine of economic progress, a force for social cohesion.”

In support of the day, the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR) and Human Rights Without Frontiers co-organized a webinar “Dialogue, Diversity, and Freedom: Reacting to the Tai Ji Men Case” on May 24, 2021. Camelia Marin, Soteria International's deputy director, facilitated the discussion. She opened the forum and showed videos in which the current and three former presidents of Taiwan, heads of state from other countries, and visionary leaders from Taiwan and around the world praised Tai Ji Men for its dedication and commitment to promoting world peace and culture, noting that Tai Ji Men has self-funded its trips to 101 countries to conduct over 3,000 cultural exchanges to unite people’s hearts.

Daniela Bovolenta, an author of Bitter Winter, pointed out that her magazine has published at least 25 articles on the Tai Ji Men case because the destruction of culture and tradition is an issue that should be of concern to everyone. She lamented that in the Tai Ji Men case in Taiwan, “We at Bitter Winter saw at work ‘Taliban of the National Tax Bureau,’ or ‘Taliban of the Administrative Enforcement Agency.’ They also expressed their intolerance by attacking visual symbols of freedom and diversity, land they confiscated that was intended for a Tai Ji Men self-cultivation center and other buildings they seized and then gave back to Tai Ji Men in ruins such as the Swiss Mountain Villa.”

A film about the Villa titled "A Dream Delayed but Not Forgotten" was premiered at the forum, documenting evidence of the crimes of the unscrupulous officials in the Tai Ji Men case. Over two decades ago, the Villa was bought by Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze, the leader of Tai Ji Men, for his dizi (disciples). It was intended for a safe haven for their qigong practice. In 1997, prosecutor Hou Kuan-Jen falsely prosecuted Tai Ji Men and froze all the assets of Dr. Hong and his wife. In the same year, the National Taxation Bureau (NTB) issued illegal tax bills to Tai Ji Men based solely on the prosecutor’s indictment. In 2003, the first criminal decision acquitted Dr. Hong, Mrs. Hong, and their co-defendants, and the Villa was unfrozen. To pursue its administrative remedy for the erroneous tax bills, Tai Ji Men was compelled to utilize the Villa as collateral. Even after the third criminal decision found the defendants not guilty of tax evasion or any other charges in 2007, the NTB still refused to return the Villa. The Villa was finally returned in 2020 after the government confiscated Tai Ji Men’s land intended for its spiritual center.

Li-Rong Huang, a volunteer defense attorney for Tai Ji Men, said, “For 23 years and 5.5 months, Dr. Hong and his wife were unable to use this place. This property had been seized for such a long time, but Dr. Hong still had to pay the property taxes. The government had seized the property for over 23 years, and now this house is dilapidated and lies in ruins.”

The Villa was originally a beautiful home that could benefit countless people, a place where they could practice qigong to improve their physical, mental, and spiritual health. Because of the greed and dereliction of duty of the rogue government officials, Tai Ji Men shifu (master) and dizi (disciples) have spent countless hours and exhausted their energy and resources over the past 25 years just to prove their innocence. This marks a tragic era of Taiwan’s history and a testament to the unscrupulous officials’ crimes. The shifu’s and dizi’s self-cultivation and dreams have been delayed for 25 years!

Prof. Massimo Introvigne, an Italian sociologist of religions, compared the corrupt tax officers in the Tai Ji Men case with the tax collectors known as publicans of Roman times, emphasizing, “The Tai Ji Men case is largely a story of rogue publicans. Both the National Tax Bureau and the Administrative Enforcement Agency emerge from the Tai Ji Men case as plagued by bureaucrats who do not care for the rights of taxpayers, nor for honesty and justice, but deeply care for their own power, and for the bonuses they can collect.” He also reminded the audience that “rogue tax bureaucrats may claim that they make countries richer by stealing money from citizens. But in the long run, they make their countries poorer, and may even destroy them.”

Willy Fautré, co-founder of Human Rights Without Frontiers, commended Tai Ji Men’s tireless efforts to promote a healthier legal and tax system in Taiwan. Fautré pointed out, “The system of tax bonuses granted to officers of the National Taxation Bureau and the Enforcement Agency which are proportional to amounts collected through taxes and auctions can lead to undue fiscal and judicial harassment and should be repealed.” Tai Ji Men contributes to the conservation of cultural variety and the moral growth of society in Taiwan by seeking justice for victims of the National Taxation Bureau, added Fautré.

Dr. Alessandro Amicarelli, president of the European Federation for Freedom of Belief (FOB), mentioned the Greek principle of isonomia (isonomy), or equality before the law, and said it is essential for Taiwan’s development. He was surprised to learn what happened to Tai Ji Men, given Taiwan's achievements. He said, “We all hope this case can be resolved.” He urged “all the good Taiwanese people to do their bit, to do something to help Tai Ji Men because Tai Ji Men is doing a lot for Taiwan and for the Taiwanese people.”

Attorney Jim Chang, vice president of the Taiwan Jury Association, said, “Over the last 25 years, Tai Ji Men shifu and dizi have been persecuted as a result of the criminal and tax cases of injustice. Hou Kuan-jen is the mastermind behind it all. However, he has never been punished for his misdeeds. Initially, administrative sanctions were to be imposed, but it was argued that the statute of limitations had expired; therefore, no disciplinary action was conducted. He was not held criminally accountable for his wrongdoings or liable for the state compensation. The defendants in the Tai Ji Men case who were detained got state compensation for their unlawful detention, which is now known as criminal compensation, but is the injustice against Tai Ji Men only limited to the unlawful detention?”

Five Tai Ji Men dizi shared their thoughts on the Tai Ji Men case and Tai Ji culture. Jason Cheng, a small and medium enterprise consultant in Taiwan and former visiting researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said, “Tai Ji culture, which encompasses the philosophy of the universe and the mystery of life, is the wisdom passed down through generations by ancient sages over 6,000 years. It is a treasure of human civilization and a very important spiritual and cultural asset of the world. Dr. Hong has devoted all his life to sharing it with his dizi and like-minded people, and has made far-reaching influence. I heard Jigmi Y. Thinley, former Prime Minister of Bhutan, said to Dr. Hong, "You are the citizen of this world," and Dr. Charles Merceica, former president of International Association of Educators for World Peace, praising Dr. Hong as the "Confucius of the modern world."

Dr. Zhi-gong Lin, an attending physician in Taiwan, mentioned that Dr. Hong led his dizi to conduct cultural exchanges of love and peace around the world and encouraged them to practice true volunteerism by using their time and money wisely to do what is meaningful and truly beneficial to the world. Dr. Lin shared his revelation after a cultural performance: “At first, I was hesitant to go on the trip because spending money was painful to me. But later when I saw the audience’s responses toward our lion dance performance, a great joy arose from the bottom of my heart that I had never felt before. I could feel the joy flowing throughout my whole body. It was then when I realized that making others happy brings great joy that money cannot buy.” Dr. Hong has been leading by example, teaching his dizi to practice love and peace, change themselves, become a better version of themselves, and bring happiness to themselves and others.

Erica Wu, a 19-year-old student at the Dubai campus of New York University, also shared her experience about Tai Ji Men’s cultural trips. “In 2016, I travelled with Tai Ji Men to Portugal for a cultural festival where different cultural groups came together and presented their cultures. During that festival, I was mesmerized by the beauty of our differences. I’ve then realized that yes, humans around the world are truly diverse, but something ties us together. From what I have learned from my shifu, it is conscience.”

Nu Nu Tsai, originally from Myanmar, is currently living in Los Angeles, also participated in many cultural exchanges with Tai Ji Men. In the face of the injustice against this organization, she lamented, “Taiwan's rogue tax authorities are greedy for bonuses, and they will not hesitate to fabricate fake tax bills by all illegal means. I feel really sad. They even ignored the fact that Tai Ji Men was innocent, adjudged by the Supreme Court in the third instance. We had no tax evasion and no violation of the tax collection law, and all the innocent defendants who were detained received national compensation for their unlawful imprisonment.”

Jason Lu, director in an electronic company in Northern California, urged the Taiwanese government to resolve the Tai Ji Men case as soon as possible: “In honor of World Cultural Diversity Day for Dialogue and Development, I really hope that the Taiwanese government can fix its mistakes in the Tai Ji Men tax case, listen to the people's voices, and return justice to Tai Ji Men.”

Protecting and respecting cultural diversity is a universal value. Any government that uses inappropriate taxation measures to persecute spiritual and cultural groups will be condemned by its people and the international community. Marco Respinti, an Italian journalist, concluded by stating that when the power to tax is abused, it becomes a great evil. He praised Tai Ji Men for its contribution and emphasized that it is a peaceful and patriotic organization and the Taiwanese government should resolve the case as soon as possible.