Commentary on the Travel Ban for Medical and Social Workers: Unconstitutional Expansion of Executive Power, Authoritarian Decision-Making Undermines Grassroots Morale

This article criticizes the Democratic Progressive Party government's decision during the early stages of COVID-19 to issue an administrative order prohibiting medical and social workers from traveling abroad. The author argues that when the epidemic hadn't reached critical levels and case numbers were low, the government's action groundlessly restricted people's freedoms protected by the Constitution. The article refutes the union's objections, emphasizing that government should first make moral appeals and provide compensation rather than adopting an 'authoritarian first slap then candy' approach. It points out this policy neglected the rights and hardship of medical workers in Kinmen-Matsu and Taiwan's remote regions.