The Ministry of Health and Welfare recently convened media representatives, children’s welfare organizations and field experts, among others, to re-examine media coverage guidelines of child assault cases.
In the future, similar coverage would be allowed to report the workplace of a suspect, as long as the suspect is still working at an institution involving children, people with disabilities or the elderly, and has not yet been cleared of legal suspicion. This is based on the need to protect public welfare and prevent further harm.
However, information about the victim must not be disclosed in a manner that allows identification.
The question comes down to the definition of an “identifiable” report, a concept with no clear legal definition: How should it be determined? Had the media reported the name of the kindergarten in the recent kindergarten child assault cases, any acquaintances, neighbors, colleagues of parents or third-party individuals could have indirectly identified the victims, potentially resulting in secondary victimization.
That said, withholding the name of the kindergarten could result in more children being harmed.
The media’s disclosure of the kindergarten’s name would only permit specific individuals — such as the victims’ acquaintances and neighbors — to identify them, while the general public would not be able to do so.
Furthermore, acquaintances and neighbors disclosing the names or identifying information of child victims would contravene Article 69 of the Protection of Children and Youths Welfare and Rights Act (兒童及少年福利與權益保障法) and thus be penalized.
Weighing the pros and cons, as well as following the principle of proportionality, the Ministry of Health and Welfare should ease restrictions and allow the media to reveal the workplaces of sexual assault suspects. This would ensure the public’s right to information and help prevent further harm.
Yeh Yu-cheng is a secretary at the Pingtung Public Health Bureau.
Translated by Wang Yun-fei
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