A large majority of the public favors harsher sentences for people convicted of killing children under the age of 12, according to a poll, which showed strong support for the death penalty following the decapitation of a four-year-old girl on Monday.
A survey conducted by Television Broadcasts Satellite’s (TVBS) poll center found that 81 percent of respondents supported mandatory death or life in prison sentences for murder of a child under 12 years old.
Lawmakers have proposed making the sentences mandatory following the decapitation of the girl, surnamed Liu (劉), nicknamed “Little Lightbulb” (小燈泡), in Taipei’s Neihu District (內湖).
Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times
Broad support for the proposed changes cut across party lines and age groups, with 64 percent of those surveyed “extremely supportive.”
The TVBS poll found that 84 percent of respondents supported maintaining the death penalty, up 2 percentage points from a similar survey conducted in June last year. Support for abolishing the death penalty fell 3 percentage points from the previous poll.
When asked whether life in prison without parole could serve as an alternative to the death penalty, only 27 percent agreed, the poll showed.
Photo: Chen Yi-kuan, Taipei Times
There was a slight decline in the percentage of those who said that the death penalty acts as a deterrent for crime, with 79 percent agreeing compared with 85 percent last year.
The cable network operator’s telephone poll was conducted on Wednesday and Thursday, with 847 valid samples and a margin of error of 3.4 percentage points.
In related news, the girl’s mother — identified as Claire Wang — said on Facebook yesterday that while she “does not support” the death penalty, she also “does not agree” with its abolition.
“Often many thoughts and ideas are like religion and politics — rooted in the heart. Those who believe will always believe and those who do not never will — I only believe in what I’ve always believed in,” she said. “I still believe that love is the heart’s first intention, that society is beautiful and that human nature at its root is good.”
She asked that people who read her Facebook comments to “forgive” her for failing to respond or clarify every comment, adding that she was not “mighty” or “extraordinary” and lacked strength, caring only that her family and friends understood her.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS