The Ministry of Justice is to propose amendments to the Criminal Code that would increase fines for illegal abortions to NT$80,000 (US$2,498) from NT$3,000, saying the current penalties are “anachronistic.”
The ministry would propose the bill in 14 days to amend Articles 288 and 290, and revoke Article 292 of the Criminal Code, it said in a statement on Tuesday.
According to the draft, the fine for pregnant women who abort a fetus would be increased to NT$80,000 from NT$3,000, while the fine for carrying out an abortion for purposes of gain would be raised to NT$500,000 from NT$15,000.
Photo: Chen Tse-ming, Taipei Times
Those who at the request or with the consent of a pregnant woman cause an abortion for purposes of gain would be fined NT$2 million, up from NT$15,000, if their commission of the offense results in her death, or NT$1 million, up from NT$15,000, if aggravated injury results, it says.
Not all abortions are a crime, as pregnant women could still have an abortion pursuant to the Genetic Health Act (優生保健法) if her bodily autonomy and the fetus’ right to life are respected, the ministry said.
However, abortions should be limited, as a fetus is “a living being growing into a person,” whose right to life should not be deprived or infringed, it said, citing similar laws in Germany and Japan.
Other regulations were established to allow women to get an abortion under circumstances in line with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, it added.
As illegal abortions could be committed in many ways, the constituent element stating that an abortion is conducted “by taking drugs or by other means” would be deleted, the ministry said.
The fines have become “anachronistic” and would be increased to align with the penalty brackets of the Criminal Code, it added.
The punishment for pregnant women who cause her abortion or permit others to cause her abortion in situations necessitated by illness or life-threatening conditions — other than those specified in the Genetic Health Act — would be revised from “remitted” to “not punishable,” it said.
Article 292, which stipulates penalties and punishments for advertising abortion, would be deleted, following the example of Germany.
The Medical Care Act (醫療法) has set out regulations on advertisements for medical care, it said.
AIR SUPPORT: The Ministry of National Defense thanked the US for the delivery, adding that it was an indicator of the White House’s commitment to the Taiwan Relations Act Deputy Minister of National Defense Po Horng-huei (柏鴻輝) and Representative to the US Alexander Yui on Friday attended a delivery ceremony for the first of Taiwan’s long-awaited 66 F-16C/D Block 70 jets at a Lockheed Martin Corp factory in Greenville, South Carolina. “We are so proud to be the global home of the F-16 and to support Taiwan’s air defense capabilities,” US Representative William Timmons wrote on X, alongside a photograph of Taiwanese and US officials at the event. The F-16C/D Block 70 jets Taiwan ordered have the same capabilities as aircraft that had been upgraded to F-16Vs. The batch of Lockheed Martin
GRIDLOCK: The National Fire Agency’s Special Search and Rescue team is on standby to travel to the countries to help out with the rescue effort A powerful earthquake rocked Myanmar and neighboring Thailand yesterday, killing at least three people in Bangkok and burying dozens when a high-rise building under construction collapsed. Footage shared on social media from Myanmar’s second-largest city showed widespread destruction, raising fears that many were trapped under the rubble or killed. The magnitude 7.7 earthquake, with an epicenter near Mandalay in Myanmar, struck at midday and was followed by a strong magnitude 6.4 aftershock. The extent of death, injury and destruction — especially in Myanmar, which is embroiled in a civil war and where information is tightly controlled at the best of times —
China's military today said it began joint army, navy and rocket force exercises around Taiwan to "serve as a stern warning and powerful deterrent against Taiwanese independence," calling President William Lai (賴清德) a "parasite." The exercises come after Lai called Beijing a "foreign hostile force" last month. More than 10 Chinese military ships approached close to Taiwan's 24 nautical mile (44.4km) contiguous zone this morning and Taiwan sent its own warships to respond, two senior Taiwanese officials said. Taiwan has not yet detected any live fire by the Chinese military so far, one of the officials said. The drills took place after US Secretary
THUGGISH BEHAVIOR: Encouraging people to report independence supporters is another intimidation tactic that threatens cross-strait peace, the state department said China setting up an online system for reporting “Taiwanese independence” advocates is an “irresponsible and reprehensible” act, a US government spokesperson said on Friday. “China’s call for private individuals to report on alleged ‘persecution or suppression’ by supposed ‘Taiwan independence henchmen and accomplices’ is irresponsible and reprehensible,” an unnamed US Department of State spokesperson told the Central News Agency in an e-mail. The move is part of Beijing’s “intimidation campaign” against Taiwan and its supporters, and is “threatening free speech around the world, destabilizing the Indo-Pacific region, and deliberately eroding the cross-strait status quo,” the spokesperson said. The Chinese Communist Party’s “threats
RSS