The Legislative Yuan, which is currently in summer recess, has decided to hold public hearings during its next session on a controversial amendment that would allow the establishment of legal red-light areas in cities and counties in Taiwan, according to lawmakers.
At issue is a draft amendment to the Social Order and Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法) that would legalize prostitution in specially designated areas.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus whip Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said the bill had been the subject of heated debate.
Some local governments have even suggested that the establishment of red-light districts runs against social mores and Taiwanese culture, he said.
The Executive Yuan adopted the amended bill on Thursday, which rules that those involved in the sex trade — including prostitutes and those who seek out their services — outside special designated red light areas would be liable for a fine of up to NT$30,000 (US$1,040).
The current law prohibits sex work as harmful to social norms of behavior and punishes only sex workers — mainly women — who are subject to a maximum of three days detention or a fine of up to NT$30,000.
However, those who solicit the services of a prostitute cannot be prosecuted.
Earlier this year, the Council of Grand Justices of the Constitutional Court ruled that existing regulations concerning prostitution violate the Constitution, and therefore ruled that they should be annulled, a ruling that takes effect on Nov. 1.
It was in response to the ruling that the Ministry of the Interior (MOI) proposed the amendment based on the human rights laid down in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, officials said.
Minister of the Interior Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) said that the amendment would authorize local governments to set up special zones for legal brothels on land designated for commercial use in urban planning districts or for leisure activities in non-urban planning districts.
He said that once the draft bill cleared the legislature, local government administrators would handle the issue in a more pragmatic manner.
“After all, it is bad to see unlicensed prostitutes wandering around cities,” he said.
However, the proposal has received only a lukewarm response from local governments, with surveys conducted by local media suggesting almost all of the 22 cities and counties around Taiwan are not interested in establishing legal red light areas, because of concerns about the possible impact on social order.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislative caucus whip Chao Li-yun (趙麗雲) said further public debate on the provisions in the bill was necessary
Beijing could eventually see a full amphibious invasion of Taiwan as the only "prudent" way to bring about unification, the US Department of Defense said in a newly released annual report to Congress. The Pentagon's "Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China 2025," was in many ways similar to last year’s report but reorganized the analysis of the options China has to take over Taiwan. Generally, according to the report, Chinese leaders view the People's Liberation Army's (PLA) capabilities for a Taiwan campaign as improving, but they remain uncertain about its readiness to successfully seize
HORROR STORIES: One victim recounted not realizing they had been stabbed and seeing people bleeding, while another recalled breaking down in tears after fleeing A man on Friday died after he tried to fight the knife-wielding suspect who went on a stabbing spree near two of Taipei’s busiest metro stations, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. The 57-year-old man, identified by his family name, Yu (余), encountered the suspect at Exit M7 of Taipei Main Station and immediately tried to stop him, but was fatally wounded and later died, Chiang said, calling the incident “heartbreaking.” Yu’s family would receive at least NT$5 million (US$158,584) in compensation through the Taipei Rapid Transit Corp’s (TRTC) insurance coverage, he said after convening an emergency security response meeting yesterday morning. National
Taiwan has overtaken South Korea this year in per capita income for the first time in 23 years, IMF data showed. Per capita income is a nation’s GDP divided by the total population, used to compare average wealth levels across countries. Taiwan also beat Japan this year on per capita income, after surpassing it for the first time last year, US magazine Newsweek reported yesterday. Across Asia, Taiwan ranked fourth for per capita income at US$37,827 this year due to sustained economic growth, the report said. In the top three spots were Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong, it said. South
PLANNED: The suspect visited the crime scene before the killings, seeking information on how to access the roof, and had extensively researched a 2014 stabbing incident The suspect in a stabbing attack that killed three people and injured 11 in Taipei on Friday had planned the assault and set fires at other locations earlier in the day, law enforcement officials said yesterday. National Police Agency (NPA) Director-General Chang Jung-hsin (張榮興) said the suspect, a 27-year-old man named Chang Wen (張文), began the attacks at 3:40pm, first setting off smoke bombs on a road, damaging cars and motorbikes. Earlier, Chang Wen set fire to a rental room where he was staying on Gongyuan Road in Zhongzheng District (中正), Chang Jung-hsin said. The suspect later threw smoke grenades near two exits
RSS