明清檔案工作室 | GRAND SECRETARIAT ARCHIVES PROJECT

I.Archives Act and Other Relate Law

1.Archivists shall abide by the provisions of the National Archives Act and its enforcement rules.

2.Archivists shall perform their duties in accordance with statutory authorization or institute policies and relevant legal restrictions.

3.Comply with the provisions of copyright, patent rights, and property rights.



II. Purpose

1.The professional ethics of archivists include establishing the consistency of various behaviors, avoiding contradictions, and using individual behaviors as criteria for judgment.
2.Archivists have an ethical obligation to society and should try their best to ensure valuable archives and keep equal enthusiasm no matter in the past or the present.


III. Personal Characteristics

1.Archivists should avoid irresponsible comments on other archivists or organizations and complain about professional or ethical issues to private, related organizations or professional archive organizations.

2.Restrict or prohibit employees' personal collection from being similar to the organization's archive collection.

3.Any act of external recruitment must be carried out under the basic premise of prioritizing the duties of the archives room itself.

4.Avoid giving suggestions on values that are excessive and out of responsibility.

5.Archivists should not profit from any commercial application of the archives within their scope of work.


VI. Professional Responsibilities of Archivists

1.Archivists are responsible for selecting, preserving, and offering usage for archives of long-term value for organizations and the public.

2.With regard to the academic purposes of the collection, formulate usage policies and procedures with the full permission of law and donation.

3.Policies and procedures should be established to protect and preserve the organization's data to avoid damage or loss.

4.Develop a policy and job to evaluate the quality collections, and serve it as a guide for selection or exclusion.

5.Develop prevention and control plans for disasters.

6.About interview work:
(1)Archivists organize the transferred files and collect archive materials with a long-term value according to the organization's purpose and existing policies and resources.

(2)Do not jeopardize the archives' long-term value, the integrity of the archives of other institutions, and the security of the archives due to archive interview competitions.

(3)Cooperate with other institutes to ensure that the archives can be processed appropriately and used effectively.


7.Relations and restrictions on donors:

(1)The negotiation between the archivist and the government transfer unit or the owner of documents with long-term value must make a fair decision based on the overall consideration of transfer, donation, purchase, and authorization, including financial planning, income, copyright, processing, and retrieval conditions, etc.

(2)Archivists shall fulfill all agreements during file transfer or interviews.

(3)Under the policy, the relationship with the donor shall be provided to the staff and possible donors, including certification, appraisal, tax, and other regulations.


8.Identification, Maintenance, Orchestration, and Description

(1)According to the organization's administrative needs or the interview policy, archivists shall make a fair judgment on the appraisal of archival materials with long-term value.

(2)Maintaining and preserving archive arrangement shall follow the original transfer format to ensure authenticity, protect the integrity, and prevent physical harm caused by damage, alteration, and theft.

(3)Respect the principles of original order and source of archives.



V. Professional Attitude of Archivists

1.Archivists should respond politely to reasonable inquiries about the collection, have a spirit of service, and cooperate with library policies, collection maintenance, legal considerations, personal rights, and donor agreements to encourage maximum and wise use of collection resources.

2.Archivists should explain the relevant restrictions and regulations for possible users and do their best to promote the archives to fully meet the general public's needs and treat users equally.



VI. Professional Learning Attitude of Archivists

1.Archivists can conduct research, publication, and comment on other scholars' works under the principles of fairness and openness.

2.Archivists share knowledge and experience with other archivists through professional societies and cooperative activities to grow together and assist others in professional growth through training or experience sharing.

3.Archivists are not historians, but they must know the history, nature, principles, and archives' practices before carrying out archive-related work.



VII. Professional Attitude of Archivists

1.Work with integrity and diligence.

2.Prevent personal or economic scope from conflicting with official duties.

3.Professional judgment should not be reversed, changed, or concealed, but must be familiar with and adhere to the institution's policies.

4.Avoid damaging the name, reputation, and property of the archives.

5.Conduct official transactions with donors or sellers under the principles of publicity and ethics.

6.The objectivity of information provided and the proof of the reliability of information must comply with ethical principles.


VIII. Fair Use and Theft Prevention of Public Property

1.Shall not accept giveaways, discounts, or other given things of value related to their official duties.

2.Shall not take advantage of the official position to use public equipment and materials for private purposes. If needed, it should be in fair use after applying for permission of usage.

3.Encourage personal research but avoid using privileges by upholding the principle of fairness and without the use of undisclosed information.



IX. Confidentiality and Privacy

1.Do not disclose or make profits from collections with restricted access.

2.For users who are researching the same information simultaneously, archivists can provide both parties' names to each other with individual consent.

3.The researcher's work-related knowledge, work, donors, and confidential issues should all be kept confidential.

4.Avoid using appraisers, donors, or other stakeholders as possible examples of any business.

5.Archivists shall respect the archive creator's privacy or content of related topics, especially those who have no position to manage the document.


X. Freedom of Information
Archivists are not encouraged to set unreasonable restrictions on the retrieval and use of archives. However, restrictions within the specified time frame during the interview or privacy protection are acceptable.