New Power Party Legislator Claire Wang (王婉諭) has proposed amending the oft-criticized Crime Victim Protection Act (犯罪被害人保護法), which she has described as “very crude” and inferior to its Western counterparts, something she knows all too well from personal experience.
The act has mainly been used to regulate compensation for victims, not ensuring their rights are respected, and the government has not done enough to inform victims of the legal assistance available to them, Wang told a news conference on Friday last week.
The act, which was promulgated in 1998, seems to come under fire every time a serious crime occurs, such as the fatal stabbing of a railway police officer in July last year — whose father died a few days after his son’s attacker was acquitted on mental health grounds in May — and the murder of a scooter rider in March.
Civic campaigners in March 2016 raised many of the same criticisms, citing the government-sponsored Association for Victims Support’s “narrow focus” on monetary compensation, and calling for a one-stop legal and psychological support system where association members and other entities would work closely with the victims’ loved ones.
They continue to call for the same improvements.
Dealing with the aftermath of a crime is very traumatizing and confusing for the victim and their family members, and compensation is just the minimum that the government can do to help them get through the grueling process, which can include collecting evidence and testifying, navigating complicated legalese and in the worst cases — overseeing an autopsy.
Sensitivity is crucial during such times, which seems to be one of the major problems that politicians and advocates bring up.
However, even the process to receive compensation is convoluted, Wang said, adding that it is the government’s responsibility to help crime victims, but they are often made to feel as if they are being done a favor.
Wang, whose three-year-old daughter was beheaded in a random attack by a mentally disturbed man in Taipei in 2016, recalls being handed a huge stack of papers after the murder, and felt that the help she received came with little warmth or sympathy.
She said that while applying for compensation, she was asked: “Do you still feel sad?”
The association cannot bear all of the blame, as it only has about 60 full-time staff and 119 part-timers across the nation, who last year handled nearly 2,000 new cases, helped 73,394 individuals and still had to help with fundraising for the organization.
The association is supervised by the Ministry of Justice and its board is mostly composed of government personnel.
Wang says that support for victims should be expanded into a comprehensive network that facilitates cooperation and communication between various government departments, as well as the families of victims and civic organizations.
The act only covers people who are killed, seriously wounded or sexually assaulted. If it cannot provide enough help, its coverage definitely needs to be restructured and expanded to include more resources.
Wang is looking to overhaul the system, which seems to be long overdue.
It is time to take a comprehensive look at this issue, instead of waiting for another tragedy to happen to get more lawmakers and government officials interested in tackling the necessary reforms.
Somehow, US intelligence identified “the Houthis’ top missile guy” and pinpointed his exact location. At 1348 hours (Washington time), March 15, President Trump’s national security advisor Mike Waltz texted, “positive ID of him walking into his girlfriend’s building.” The unsuspecting Romeo entered. High above, the drone monitoring the building registered a flash. When the smoke cleared, Mr. Waltz texted, “…And it’s now collapsed.” RIP. The star-crossed “top missile guy” had been target number one in the now uproarious US Navy bombing campaign on that Sunday against the Yemeni rebels who have been holding the Red Sea hostage since October 19,
China on Tuesday, April Fool’s Day, began two-day joint-force military exercises around Taiwan, painting them as a “severe warning and forceful containment against Taiwan independence.” However, the exercises have again proven the country increasingly showcasing its military muscles to be a true “troublemaker.” Without prior notice, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Eastern Theater Command launched large-scale exercises codenamed “Strait Thunder-2025A,” deploying aircraft, drones and naval vessels including the Shandong aircraft carrier, as well as armed militia in the air and waters around Taiwan. The PLA claimed the military exercises were practice for precision strikes and a blockade to “close
Days ago, foreign media reported that Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Eastern Theater Command Director Lin Xiangyang (林向陽) is suspected to have disappeared under suspicious circumstances. The Eastern Theater Command is the core military department responsible for operations against Taiwan — the purging of its director, if true, would be a major blow to the morale of the Chinese military and the success of its training. On Tuesday morning — April Fool’s Day — the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) Eastern Theater Command suddenly announced the launch of joint military exercises in the air and maritime spaces surrounding Taiwan. The exercises
During the four-day Tomb Sweeping Festival holiday, many recall campaigns set up temporary stalls in their electoral districts to encourage more eligible voters to sign second-phase recall petitions. As of Wednesday, a total of 47 recall efforts — targeting 35 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers and 12 Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers — had advanced to the second phase, which requires signatures from at least 10 percent of eligible voters in the constituency within 60 days to proceed to a final vote. Nearly all recall petitions against KMT legislators cleared the first-phase review and launched their second phase between March 8 and
RSS