Death Penalty
(Capital punishment)
in Taiwan         
       
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Taiwan

         Taiwanese don't trust judges

trust death-penalty judgments ??

   

  National ChungCheng University (國立中正大學), 2022-2-14: study found 76.3%Taiwanese  poll respondents oppose abolishment of death penalty,18.7% agree, but supporting measures neededdeptcrc.ccu.edu.tw/index.php?option=module&lang=cht&task=pageinfo&id=432&index=1

DW (Germany), 2022-10-23: German parliamentary human rights committee delegation (Peter Heidt, Heike Engelhardt, Derya Türk-Nachbaur , Michael Brand , Carsten Brodesser )  arrived at Taiwan and discussed human rights issues including the death penalty with their Taiwanese counterpartsCapital punishment is still a statute on the books in Taiwan.   dw.com/en/german-lawmakers-arrive-in-taiwan-amid-tensions-with-china/a-63530806   msn.com/en-us/news/world/german-lawmakers-arrive-in-taiwan-amid-tensions-with-china/ar-AA13hMCZ

 Taipei Times, etc, 2022-9-13: DETERRENT: About 88 percent of respondents said capital punishment helps prevent serious crimes, while nearly 89 percent were dissatisfied with the pace of executions

 86.9 percent of respondents opposed the abolition of capital punishment in Taiwan, 88.8 percent were dissatisfied that the Tsai administration carried out only two executions over the past six years.  The poll also showed that 73.6 percent are dissatisfied with public safety in Taiwan, while 25.5 percent are satisfied.   taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2022/09/13/2003785231

 justsecurity.org, Focus Taiwan, Taipei Times, etc, 2022-5-13: Invited by Taiwan's government, an international human rights experts panel conducted a five-day review from May 9-13 in Taipei of the country's implementation of two United Nations' human rights-related covenants, namely the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).
international panel experts called on Taiwan to end the “cruel and degrading” practice of capital punishment.  The nine-member group said it was "extremely disappointed" at the failure of Taiwan's government to address the issue"Taiwan is already among a very, very small number of countries in the world that still retain the death penalty, and the arguments that are time and again, repeated by the government, are far from convincing,"  experts said the "cruel, inhuman and degrading" punishment was in violation of ICCPR's Article 6 and 7.

  Japan Times, 2022-1-4 : Taiwan's claim to be a regional bastion of human rights is being undermined by its retention of capital punishmentCapital punishment remains popular in Taiwan.  Despite its frequent use against dissidents during decades of martial law, most polls show Taiwanese still support the death penalty even as the island has become one of the most progressive democracies in Asia.  Taiwan president Tsai has called abolishing capital punishment "a difficult issue to deal with" due to the lack of support from the public that would require "a long process, a long time" to change.  brief

 

  South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), Jan. 2022: Taiwanese death row inmate's case turns focus on use of capital punishmentCampaigners say Wang Xin-fu, the island's oldest death row prisoner, was wrongly convicted for the murder of a policeman in 1990  scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3162028/taiwanese-death-row-inmates-case-turns-focus-use-capital
 
Japan Times,  2022-1-4: Activists claim there are "obvious flaws" in the conviction of Wang Xin-fu, Taiwan's oldest death row prisoner, from inconsistent testimony, allegations of police torture against a witness, a lack of motive and no fingerprints. 
 ♣ New York Times,  2022-1-21: Taiwanese prosecutors formally charged a suspect with homicide and arson... she "intended to make her boyfriend embarrassed and regretful by setting the fire, which caused major disasters and claimed innocent lives," and she "showed no regrets after committing the crime"... the prosecutors would seek the death penalty. nytimes.com/2022/01/21/world/asia/taiwan-fire-ghost-building-suspect.html

 

 Amnesty International, June, 2021, amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/English.pdf ; amnesty.org/en/location/asia-and-the-pacific/east-asia/taiwan/report-taiwan/ 
Death penalty /  
Amendments to the Prison Act in January resulted in changes to the Regulations for the Execution of the Death Penalty in July. The amended regulations still allowed death sentences for individuals with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities.  Taiwan's authorities made no progress towards abolition during the year and continued to carry out executions.

 Amnesty International, June, 2021, amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/English.pdf ; amnesty.org/en/location/asia-and-the-pacific/east-asia/taiwan/report-taiwan/ 
Death penalty /  
Amendments to the Prison Act in January resulted in changes to the Regulations for the Execution of the Death Penalty in July. The amended regulations still allowed death sentences for individuals with psychosocial or intellectual disabilities.  Taiwan's authorities made no progress towards abolition during the year and continued to carry out executions.

 

 Amnesty International, 2021-4-21: Egypt,  ... India, Oman, Qatar and Taiwan also resumed executions.  “The death penalty is an abhorrent punishment and pursuing executions in the middle of a pandemic further highlights its inherent cruelty.   (amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/04/death-penalty-2020-despite-covid-19-some-countries-ruthlessly-pursued-death-sentences-and-executions/)


Taiwan News, 2021-4-22 : The" Death Sentences and Executions 2020" report by Amnesty International lists Taiwan as one of the 18 nations that carried out the death penalty in 2020.  Taiwan's Minister of Justice Tsai Ching-hsiang (蔡清祥) said on April 21, 2021 that Taiwan remains on track to abolish capital punishment despite an execution and five death sentences last year.   taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4184012

UDN, 2021-2-26:  According to a survey by National Chung Cheng University, 41.5% poll respondents  oppose abolishment of the death penalty, 31.7% disagree but would lik to reconsider the issue of abolishment of the death penalty if supporting measures available.  3.1% said they would like to see the death penalty abolished nationwide.  The research found majority of Taiwanese still support heavy punishment for felonies.

udn.com/news/story/7321/5279400

 

 AFP 4-3-2020: International and local rights groups urged Taiwan to immediately announce a moratorium on executions and set a timeline for complete abolition.  "The government said its policy is to gradually abolish the death penalty but it took opposite action to carry out its second execution ...This is certainly a regression in human rights.
Jurist 4-3-2020: The Federation for Human Rights, the Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR) and Covenants Watch said they cast “serious doubts on Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen’s commitment to human rights.”

National CCU (國立中正大學犯罪研究中心) survey 2020-2-21: 77.4% Taiwanese people disagree abolishing death penalty ―  46.3% of them totally disagree abolishing death penalty,  31.1% of them basically disagree, but would reconsider the issue if  complementary measures or supplementary measures provided.   The percentage of previous year is 79.6%.    14.2% of the public basically agree abolishing death penalty if  complementary measures measures provided.  only 2.7% totally agree abolishing death penalty,1.2% decreased compared to that of previous year.

www005006.ccu.edu.tw/upload_file/bulletin/15822582689848.pdf

ps: 80% Taiwanese people don't believe Taiwan justice, why do Taiwanese support judicial system's death-penalty judgments ?  Do they want some dead to keep society safe? keep peace of mind ? From [The Life of David Gale] we saw misjudgment in the US, Taiwan's justice system is much worse.
USA Country Reports on Human Rights practices,  2021-3-30:  Some political commentators and academics, however, publicly questioned the impartiality of judges and prosecutors involved in high profile, politically sensitive cases.

   

 

 

 

 

 


pic. : International Federation For Human Rights Motion condemns the use of death penalty in Taiwan,
10-25-2019
 
(Taiwan encroaches the human rights and violates CICCPR - The International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights)
 

 

   

★  80% Taiwanese don't believe Taiwan justice, why do Taiwanese support their death-penalty judgments??

 

 

 

pic.:  The sites-group was ranked No.1  "Taiwan death penalty" on Bing at 4-15-2021; No.1  "death penalty in Taiwan" on Bing at 4-3-2020;  No.3 at 10-25-2019

 

Some politicians involving persecutions again and again may deserve heavy punishment or death penalty

The Hill, 2021-3-28:  We (the US) will be guilty of a similar crime against humanity if we stand by and watch slavery or murder happen to Taiwanese...
Similarly, Taiwan will be guilty of a similar crime against humanity if the government stands by and watches persecutions happen to Taiwanese everywhere !
Worse than that, Taiwan is suspected to commit those persecution crimes, according to Transitional justice Committee, Dec.  2020

 

 

 

◆  Death penalty is a hot controversial issue, bur none of Presidential candidates talks about it, even in their official policy speech / Apple Daily, 12-25-2019

 

pic. left:  Right before Presidential election, Taiwan P.M. initiates a topic of death penalty

 issue /  Apple Daily, 10-26-2019
   ps: Apple Daily, editorial 7-17-2018 : The use of death penalty should not be served as political tools in democratic country  ......

         The United Daily News,  Taiwan, 6-7-2015:
Justice should not be a tool for politics,  It's not civilized that carrying out the executions
reeks of political calculations by a government attempting to gain points by quelling public anger.  


pic. middle:
100+ countries in FIDH condemns Taiwan seriously infringes the human rights of prisoners and violates
 
<CICCPR - The International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights> / UDN, 10-26-2019


pic. right:  Taiwan keeps taking double-faced tactics -  declaring
abolishing the death penalty while facing international pressures,  however,
using capital punishments to fool voters while facing elections 
/ UDN, 10-26-2019

The European Union, Bruxelles, 31/08/2018: The execution in Taiwan ends the moratorium on the application of the death penalty that had de facto been in place since May 2016.   The European Union is unequivocally opposed to the use of capital punishment.  It is a cruel and inhumane punishment, which fails to act as a deterrent and represents an unacceptable denial of human dignity and integrity.   the European Union looks to the Taiwanese authorities to immediately reintroduce a moratorium on the death penalty, as recommended by international experts in March 2013, as a first step to its total abolition. (brief)

 <AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL >, UK, 8-31-2018: deeply disappointing that Taiwan resumed the implementation of a cruel punishment, an act that casts a shadow over Tsai’s presidency, after President Tsai Ing-wen had stated clearly that her government aims to abolish the death penalty.   The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights and can never deliver justice or accountability. (brief)

British Labour Party, MP (member of parliament) etc in Taiwan's Apple Daily, 10-1-2018 : Taiwan's international status and reputation are in critical condition or grave danger for that Taiwan resumed the implementation of death punishment recently, Taiwan retreats a big step, don't let media opinions influence this issue.   ( translation - 英國工黨國會議員施凱爾等: 死刑處決讓台灣國際聲望與地位全都岌岌可危, 台灣已往後倒退一大步, 勿讓輿論主導死刑存廢 - brief)

<AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL >:The execution of six people in Taiwan is a regressive decision, politically motivated decision that does not deliver justice. / Taiwan's Apple Daily 4-7-2016.  
 Apple Daily, opinion, 6-9-2018 : There's no objective standard of death penalty in Taiwan, some people were executed to meet political demands. ( https://tw.news.appledaily.com/headline/daily/20180609/38039200/
 Apple Daily, opinion, 7-17-2018 :  Death penalty execution absolutely should not be used as a tactic to serve other purposes, particularly, turning the political tide, this is what a democratic country suppose to be !

<AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL >: Research demonstrates that the death penalty is often applied in a discriminatory manner, being used disproportionately against the poor, minorities and members of racial, ethnic and religious communities. The death penalty is often imposed after a grossly unfair trial.  Scientific studies have consistently failed to find convincing evidence that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than other punishments.
At June 5, 2015, The EU ( the European Union) calls on the authorities in Taiwan to introduce an immediate moratorium on executions as recommended by international experts in March 2013 following Taiwan's first human rights report, and as observed in Taiwan from 2006 to April 2010.  In 2014, EU expressed regret over Taiwan's death penalty again following executions (FocusTaiwan & BBC, 5.1.2014).  Taiwan's human rights groups questioned Taiwan's execution this time with political purpose (trying to shift the focus on
the signing of the service trade agreement with red China, and nuclear factory issue).
Taiwanese people don't quite trust judicial system,
National Chung Cheng university's survey (head-page of the Liberty Times, 2-23-2016) found: more than 84% Taiwanese people don't believe judges, nearly 80% Taiwanese don't believe the impartiality of Taiwan's prosecutors, and public trust on Taiwan judiciary system keeps falling down in the past 8 years.  According to "2012 Taiwan Human Rights Indicator Survey" (Dec. 4, 2012), about 53.5 percent of the respondents gave the protection of judicial human rights a negative rating, compared with 21.4 percent who rated it positively (<Taiwan News> Dec. 5, 2012).
Taiwan has executed death penalty
(1) Taiwan follows public's views (not experts' opinions) (2) Taiwan did not follow his commitment to abolish death penalty (China Times, Dec. 23, 2012).