the war not ceased

Statement from Joyce Kuang in response to ATJ support

Translated from Chinese by DigiTimes.com
1. I am deeply grateful to the Association of Taiwan Journalists (ATJ) for its defense of press freedom.
2. I sincerely hope that this case will not dampen the morale of journalists. As it is getting more difficult for Taiwan’s industry to survive, the only momentum keeping journalists in the business is their commitment to society.
3. I hope this is just an isolated case, and will not be imitated by other major businesses. The relation between businesses and the press must not be strained because of my case. The ties between business and the press should grow in a healthy environment where they can communicate with and supervise each other. This is the only way to protect the general public’s interest.
4. Ever since the dispute with Hon Hai erupted, I have respected the position of the Commercial Times. My own position has never clashed with the newspaper’s, with both of us thinking that rational communication is the best solution to the dispute. I regret that the public have expressed criticism and misunderstanding over the newspaper’s stance. I hope the case will be resolved as soon as possible.

Original article from the Commercial Times(2004.04.29)

New Intel platform to benefit Hon Hai

New chipset to use Hon Hai’s LGA775 connector, worldwide volume of six million units expected in third quarter
Joyce (Wen-chi) Kuang in Taipei
Note: Originally published in Chinese on page 13 of the April 29, 2004 edition of the Commercial Times, in the “Production and Marketing of the High-tech Industry” section. Article translated into English and used with permission. Hon Hai Precision Industry trades under the registered name of Foxconn Electronics in many countries. Hon Hai is a transliteration of the company’s Chinese name.
Intel’s biggest desktop PC platform renewal in recent years will be kicked off this quarter with the launch of the Grantsdale and Alderwood chipsets. To cater for the new generation Prescott processor, the CPU connector will also change from the present PGA478 to the new LGA775. Motherboard makers have recently reported that due to technical issues, almost everyone will initially have to use Hon Hai’s connectors. Because the unit price is relatively high, it is expected that when Intel launches the new platform, it will contribute much to Hon Hai’s profits.
Motherboard makers said the current average quote price for Hon Hai’s LGA775 connector exceeds US$7. The price is even higher than the launch price of the PGA478. When the PGA478 was launched, Hon Hai enjoyed a golden period of profits. Currently, quotes for PGA478 connectors have dropped to US$1-2. In comparison, the new connectors will be more than twice as expensive.
According to preliminary estimates in the motherboard sector, 20% of third quarter shipments are expected to use the 775 platform because the top four motherboard makers will not only use the LGA775 connector for the new chipsets, but they will also introduce LGA775 connectors with existing chipsets in order to support the latest Prescott processor. With a combined 10 million motherboards expected to be shipped each month, at least six million LGA775 boards are expected to be shipped in the quarter. With a margin estimated to exceed 50%, the potential contribution to Hon Hai’s profits is clear.
First-tier makers indicate that the technology for the new connector is quite a big change from the past. In order to ensure quality and maintain shipment volumes, the makers at first will rely quite heavily on Hon Hai products. Compared to traditional connectors, the LGA775 is metal and it consists of many pins, rather than densely distributed holes. The increased number of connections improves electrical performance. However, the production cost for the connectors will increase.
Currently motherboard makers have contacted Intel, hoping that the company will certify more connector makers in order to encourage cost reductions. According to sources, Tyco-AMP is ready to begin shipments. As to whether there will be a repeat of last year’s scenario when connectors were in short supply, makers think the chances are slim, because demand for new platform immediately after launch is not expected to be particularly high.
Another issue deserving attention is that the exposed pins of the LGA775 connectors will need to be protected with a cover during shipment. Makers may also have to face increased demand for after-sales service when consumers attempt to plug in CPUs in the wrong direction, causing damage to the pins or other problems. Any increased costs caused by these issues will need to be shouldered by the motherboard makers. At that time, vendors may have a headache trying to determine who should take the blame, the motherboard makers, Hon Hai or Intel.

ATJ launches petition in protest of Hon Hai (Foxconn) chairman’s attack on press freedom in Taiwan

Press release; DigiTimes.com,Taipei [Friday 17 December 2004]

The Association of Taiwan Journalists (ATJ) today launched a drive to collect 10,000 signatures in support of Commercial Times reporter Joyce (Wen-chi) Kuang. The reporter has been sued by Hon Hai Precision Industry’s Chairman Terry T. M. Gou because of his displeasure with her report “Intel’s new platform to benefit Hon Hai,” published on April 29, 2004. Gou has effectively frozen Kuang’s assets of approximately NT$30 million with a bond of NT$10 million (about US$309,000) placed with the Taipei local court.
The ATJ raised its concerns with Hon Hai on November 30 and demanded that the company retract the injunction against Kuang by December 15. Kuang’s case has already dropped a bombshell in the media industry and both business and academic circles. It is generally viewed as a dangerous precedent in the relations between the press and businesses, when businesses use their financial muscle to control and threaten the press.
Gou, as the “richest man in Taiwan,” has great influence, but he has ignored public opinion and all the calls by academics not to harm the freedom of the press. He has also ignored journalist associations requesting he not impinge their right to work.
As of the evening of December 15, Hon Hai had not responded in either verbal or written form to the calls for a lifting of the provisional seizure of Kuang’s assets. In consequence, the ATJ has condemned Hon Hai’s despicable effort to impinge on the freedom of the press, its abuse of its considerable financial might, its haughty and domineering attitude, its selection of individual reporters for persecution and its attempt to control the press. The ATJ will actively team up with journalist groups worldwide to conduct a series of global protest actions.
The ATJ, after internal discussion and consultation with international affiliates, will take three actions:
1. Taiwan media: A signature drive, entitled “Don’t think the next little shrimp won’t be you?!,” will be launched within media, academic and cultural circles in protest of Hon Hai’s abuse of its financial muscle to impinge on the freedom of press. After the signatures are collected, an appropriate time will be selected to stage a protest in front of Hon Hai’s headquarters. Signature forms can be downloaded from the ATJ website.
2. Foreign media: As a member of the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), the ATJ will seek help from the global association and its members. Terry Gou’s use of his financial muscle to single out an individual reporter in an out-of-proportion legal battle is expected to significantly hurt Taiwan’s press and image of democracy, and will certainly raise eyebrows in the international media community. The ATJ has formally requested that the IFJ kick off a global protest campaign, and has already received support from Japan’s Shinbun Roren. Beginning today, the ATJ will team up with press groups in various countries to send protest letters to some of Hon Hai’s major OEM customers, including Dell, Sony, Nokia and Hewlett-Packard (HP). The letters will remind these international companies of the need to carefully choose “OEM partners,” and ask them not to place orders with businesses that ignore human rights and impinge on press freedom.
3. According to Forbes 2003 statistics, Terry Gou’s wealth amounted to US$2.8 billion, topping the list of richest man in Taiwan. Hon Hai has a team of more than 400 people handling legal affairs. With his wealth and legal support, Gou, nevertheless, has displayed his displeasure with the media in an improper manner. He has chosen to exert pressure by depositing NT$10 million in the court, and succeeded in freezing the reporter’s assets for the past seven months. This action has created tremendous stress and caused significant inconvenience for the reporter in her daily life. It may also threaten reporters into exercising self-censorship when reporting news about Hon Hai in the future. The ATJ has already received many complaints from its members about Hon Hai having exercised such control on the press for a long time. The ATJ will reveal details of additional cases at a later date.
The ATJ thinks that business development and press freedom have been two major stabilizing factors in Taiwan’s economic development. They have developed in a mutually monitoring and encouraging relationship. Hon Hai is Taiwan’s largest manufacturing business and the company is not just responsible to its shareholders. Any of its actions will attract international attention. It should come under the media and society’s supervision. When businesses have complaints about media reports, they can communicate then with the media establishments running the reports, or even sue them. However, Hon Hai has spared the newspaper’s management, directly causing the provisional seizure against an individual reporter on a selective basis. The action is out of proportion, and a violation of social justice. It has generated criticism that it is a case pitching “a big whale against a small shrimp.”
ATJ has no intention to interfere with Hon Hai’s operations, but in this case Terry Gou should not have applied a tactic often seen to be used against business competitors. The ATJ strongly urges Hon Hai to retract the provisional seizure of Kuang’s assets as soon as possible, to engage in rational dialogue and to return the media its “freedom from fear” when reporting business news.




About Foxconn Electronics (Hon Hai)
Foxconn Electronics (the registered trade name of Hon Hai Precision Industry) was established in 1974 to produce plastic products. Apart from being Taiwan’s largest manufacturer of connectors, Foxconn is also a leading contract manufacturer of a range of system products, including desktop PCs, servers and mobile phones. It is one of the few Taiwan manufacturers to have a truly global manufacturing base, with multiple sites in America, Western and Eastern Europe and Greater China.
Foxconn’s monthly revenues exceed its closest competitor in the IT industry – notebook maker Quanta Computer – by over 10% and are around three times greater than Taiwan’s best-known IT brand Acer.
Company CEO Terry T. M. Gou (sometimes spelt Kuo or Guo) was ranked by Forbes as the 176th richest person in the world, with a net worth of US$2.8 billion, in February 2004. Of the 10 residents of Taiwan included in the ranking, Kuo was ranked second, behind Tsai Wan Lin & family (former head of Cathay Financial Holdings, dies September 27, 2004) and level with YC Wang (Formosa Plastics).

Petition: “Don't think that the next little shrimp won't be you?!”

In support of Commercial Times reporter Joyce (Wen-chi) Kuang, we demand that the richest man in Taiwan, Terry Gou, chairman of Hon Hai Precision Industry, end his legal maneuver that has caused the Taipei District Court to place Joyce (Wen-chi) Kuang’s assets under provisional seizure.
Organizer: Association of Taiwan Journalists (ATJ)
Ranked by Forbes magazine as Taiwan’s richest man with assets of US$2.8 billion, Terry Gou is supported by a team of over 400 legal experts at his company. When such a powerful and wealthy man as Gou wields his sword at a media worker like you, what could you do?
Unite and speak up: this is the only way to break away from the control of a big mean business.
As the richest man in Taiwan, Gou has shown his displeasure with a Commercial Times report by singling out the author, Kuang, without challenging the Chinese-language newspaper. This scare tactic is intended to threaten individual reporters into exercising self-censorship.
We can only use our pens, our conscience, and moral courage to sternly lodge a collective protest against the richest man in Taiwan. We must say it out loud: “press freedom cannot be suppressed with money.”
The Association of Taiwan Journalists invites you to join our “little shrimp against the big whale” campaign and demand that Gou withdraws his legal action against Kuang, allowing Taiwan’s press to operate in freedom.

Signatory: ___________________________________________________

Country: ___________________________________________________

Institution: ___________________________________________________

Position: ___________________________________________________

Date: ___________________________________________________

ATJ Protest Foxconn's Chairman Kuo Flouting Press Freedom

Press Release

We Protest Foxconn's (Hung Hai's) Chairman Kuo Flouting Press Freedom

Taipei, Taiwan, 30 November 2004 – The Association of Taiwanese Journalist has expressed serious concern on a case in which the chairman of Hung Hai Electronic, a Taiwan-based electronic giant, has taken advantage of legal loophole by filing a legal detaining request of NT$30 million against a local business reporter on concern of unverified reporting, but withholding pressing charge. The ATJ considers that the legal action has apparently been taken to intimate journalists as a whole with the aim of suppressing reporters from reporting adverse news against the company. The ATJ is planning to launch a series of campaigns in protest of Hung Hai flouting press freedom.

The reporter, Ms Kuang Wen-chi, published a story on the Commercial Times on 29 April 2004, in which she praised the technological capability of Hung Hai, which was likely to enable Hung Hai to benefit from the introduction of Intel’s new platform. However, Hung Hai considered that she revealing the quotation of the connector – US$7 each, has incurred market rumours from its competitors, one that has damaged its marketing strategy it had set before the rollout of Intel’s new platform. Hung Hai further accused Kuang of implying Hung Hai’s products to have high price but poor quality.

Valuing the “damage” that Ms Kuang’s story has made to its interest as high as NT$30 million, Hung Hai made appeal to Taipei District Court for detaining Ms Kuang’s property temporarily. The appeal was approved by the court, resulting in one third of Kuang’s salary to be detained by the court from June 2004.

The ATJ points out that the temporary detaining request was not made on a proportional principle but was filed to showcase to other reporters with the intention of forming an invisible pressures on reporters in reporting stories about such a large enterprise as Hung Hai. The ATJ has seriously condemned the action against press freedom of Hung Hai and Hung Hai’s chairman, Mr Kuo Tai-ming and advocate those who care about Taiwan’s media environment to stand by the association.

“Hung Hai didn’t file to the court any temporary detaining request against the Commercial Times but only the reporter individually has clearly shown that its intention was not to protect its own right through legal means but to intimidate the reporters as a whole. It is something that the ATJ can never agree with, “ stressed ATJ.

The ATJ has strongly demanded Hung Hai to cancel the detaining request to the court and given that Hung Hai is listed company, the ATJ has a plan to request relevant supervisory bodies including Taiwan Securities Exchange Company and the Financial Supervisory and Management Commission, to look into the case on whether the rights of its shareholders have been abused or not.

鴻海，聽聽來自網路的聲音。 Foxconn, Listen to those voices form the internet.

唇亡齒寒 : 聲援記協 連署抗議鴻海打壓新聞自由
【記協新聞稿】抗議鴻海董事長郭台銘打壓新聞自由
打壓新聞自由連到鴻海網站！　Google炸彈成功運用
阿孝札記: 抗議台灣首富用錢打壓新聞自由
Google Bomb鴻海吧！
台灣記協將串聯全球進行大反制
記協連署抗議鴻海首頁
請您跟我一起罵郭台銘，不要臉~~
陳凱爾: 孤狗炸彈！！
kleinerfisch's: 抗議鴻海郭台銘打壓新聞自由 ...
台灣媒體觀察教育基金會: §大鯨魚對付小蝦米
Journalists move against Hon Hai over court action
譴責鴻海─傳學鬥對記協連署活動聲名
一位記者的良心告白

鴻海，選擇缺席：FOXCONN, NOT COMING

打壓新聞自由的鴻海（Foxconn）和工商時報，均未出現在台灣記者協會的研討會（12/22）上。儘管如此，對於企業利用法律工具實質造成媒體從業人員者的工作困境，在場與談人仍然進行了熱烈的發言。

錄音檔下載：http://nccu.edu.tw/92451001/1222.mp3

鴻海，沒有道歉；FOXCONN, NO APOLOGY

打壓新聞自由的鴻海（Foxconn）和工商時報，針對記者假扣押事件發表一個聲明，沒有道歉。

-----------------------------------------

工商時報與鴻海精密工業股份有限公司（Foxconn）就記者曠文琪假扣押事件共同聲明如下：

一、鴻海公司（Foxconn）認為，有關本事件的基本立場為：
任何新聞報導必須確實查證，將可免於造成企業之困擾與傷害。

二、工商時報的基本立場是，秉持客觀公正之報導原則，
並認為媒體報導的正確性，攸關企業的生存與發展，於報導過程中，當一以貫之。

三、雙方基於上述共識，為避免社會各界因未確實瞭解本事件之實情而有所誤解，
及為減輕本事件所造成的紛擾，雙方願以最大誠意，讓本事件及早落幕。

四、雙方在未來新聞查證上，確實保持良好的互動。
鴻海公司爰決定，依法律相關程序撤回對曠文琪的假扣押案件。

工商時報
鴻海精密工業股份有限公司（Foxconn）