The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a package of amendments to the Civil Code that would lower the age of majority from 20 to 18, which, if passed by the Legislative Yuan, is expected to take effect in 2023.
The package includes 38 legal amendments involving 14 central government agencies, Minister Without Portfolio Lo Ping-cheng (羅秉成) told a news conference at the Executive Yuan in Taipei.
The proposals were made to bring the nation in line with the international trend, as the age of majority in the US, the UK, France and Germany are all 18, Lo said, adding that Japan in 2018 also passed legislation that lowered the legal age to 18.
Photo: CNA
The age of criminal responsibility is 18, but the legal age defined by the code is 20, which has resulted in incongruities, he said.
Furthermore, the legal age of marriage for men is 18, but 16 for women, which runs counter to the values of gender equality, he said.
International experts have said that the nation’s marriageable age for women contravenes the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and that allowing women to marry at the age of 16 is tantamount to condoning child marriage, he said.
The legal age in the code was defined in 1929, which no longer fits today’s needs, considering how much more mature young people are today than in the past, he said.
If passed, Taiwanese who have turned 18 would be able to do a list of things that they would otherwise have had to wait, including renting a house, signing a contract, opening a bank account, starting a company or serving as a company director, filing a lawsuit or becoming members of commercial or education groups, he said.
The lowering of the legal age would have a profound impact on the nation and usher in a new era, he said, adding that it is imperative that all agencies affected adjust their administrative work accordingly.
Society today is far more advanced from 91 years ago in that people are more educated and enlightened, which merits the lowering of the legal age, Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) said.
There are 110 nations in the world that set their age of majority at 18, he said.
Academics, civic groups and students have long called for the age to be lowered, and the changes have been proposed in response to public expectations, he said.
Government agencies should communicate extensively with legislative caucuses so that the proposals could swiftly be passed into law, he said.
National Alliance of Parents Organizations chairman Hsieh Kuo-ching (謝國清) said he welcomed the amendments, but added that the government should improve education on students’ problem solving skills and help them learn to be responsible for their decisions.
Additional reporting by Rachel Lin
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old
SEA SEARCH: Nine crew members of a cargo ship had taken to the water after the vessel sunk off the southern coast, with a rescue effort under way, officials said The strongest typhoon to hit Taiwan in eight years yesterday killed three people and flooded parts of the nation’s second-biggest city, while rescuers were searching for nine sailors after their cargo ship sank in the storm. Typhoon Gaemi transformed streets in Kaohsiung into rivers, with some households flooded. Offices and schools were closed for the second consecutive day, with thousands of people evacuated. Three people died and 380 were injured due to strong winds and torrential rainfall brought by Typhoon Gaemi, the Central Emergency Response Center said. The typhoon made landfall in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳) at midnight yesterday and departed Taiwan