A government-subsidized psychiatric institution in Miaoli County is at the center of an alleged patient abuse scandal.
A superintendent at Chinmin Educational Institute for the Mentally Disabled was allegedly filmed mistreating residents, and videos have been obtained by the Parents’ Association for Persons with Intellectual Disability (PAPID).
The association yesterday accused the county government of dereliction and called for the closure of the care home.
Photo: Chien Jung-fong, Taipei Times
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Chen Chieh-ju (陳節如) accompanied PAPID at a press conference at the Legislature Yuan, where the footage was played, showing the superintendent kicking, strangling, spanking and hitting the residents.
The group said the institute was given a national evaluation of “C” in 2008, which was reissued after re-evaluation in the same year. While the institute was graded B after re-evaluation in 2011, the association said that the county government had failed to fine the institute in the four years between, as it should have in accordance with the People with Disabilities Rights Protection Act (身心障礙者權益保障法).
“The institute has continued to be subsidized by both the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the local government,” association chairperson Yang Hsien-chung (楊憲忠) said.
“One of the residents, who was shown to be constantly abused by the superintendent, even has the county government — or, to be specific, the director of the county’s Labor Affairs and Social Resources Department — as his legal guardian, under a district court ruling made in 2012,” he said, adding that even this kind of protection could not save the resident from mistreatment.
“Miaoli County Commissioner Liu Cheng-hung (劉政鴻) was able to destroy farmland at midnight and raze buildings when protestors were away, but could not rectify the problem at this institute, or at least hand down a fine to this failing facility,” Chen said.
PAPID asked for an immediate legal investigation into the district court’s role and called for the setup of a special investigation led by the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Social and Family Affairs Administration into the institute.
PAPID vice director Tseng Ya-lun (曾雅倫) said they asked the ministry to send representatives the press conference, but were instead promised a ministry response at today’s legislative plenary session as Chen is to question ministry officials over the issue.
Considering that most countries issue more than five denominations of banknotes, the central bank has decided to redesign all five denominations, the bank said as it prepares for the first major overhaul of the banknotes in more than 24 years. Central bank Governor Yang Chin-lung (楊金龍) is expected to report to the Legislative Yuan today on the bank’s operations and the redesign’s progress. The bank in a report sent to the legislature ahead of today’s meeting said it had commissioned a survey on the public’s preferences. Survey results showed that NT$100 and NT$1,000 banknotes are the most commonly used, while NT$200 and NT$2,000
A NT$39 receipt for two bottles of tea at a FamilyMart was among the NT$10 million (US $312,969) special prize winners in the January-February uniform invoice lottery. FamilyMart said that two NT$10 million-winning receipts were issued at its stores, as well as two NT$2 million grand prizes and three NT$200,000 first prizes. The two NT$10 million receipts were issued at stores in Pingtung County and Yilan County’s Dongshan Township (冬山). One winner spent just NT$39 on two bottles of tea, while another spent NT$80 on water, tea and coffee, the company said. Meanwhile, 7-Eleven reported three NT$10 million winners — in New Taipei
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported the first case of a new COVID-19 subvariant — BA.3.2 — in a 10-year-old Singaporean girl who had a fever upon arrival in Taiwan and tested positive for the disease. The girl left Taiwan on March 20 and the case did not have a direct impact on the local community, it said. The WHO added the BA.3.2 strain to its list of Variants Under Monitoring in December last year, but this was the first imported case of the COVID-19 variant in Taiwan, CDC Deputy Director-General Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said. The girl arrived in Taiwan on
ANNUAL EVENT: Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in Daan Park, with an event zone operating from 10am to 6pm This year’s Taipei Floral Picnic is to be held at Daan Park today and tomorrow, featuring an exclusive Pokemon Go event, a themed food market, a coffee rave picnic area and stage performances, the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism said yesterday. Two massive Pokemon balloons are to be set up in the park as attractions, with an exclusive event zone operating from 10am to 6pm, it said. Participants who complete designated tasks on-site would have a chance to receive limited-edition souvenirs, it added. People could also try the newly launched game Pokemon Pokopia in the trial area, the department said. Three PokeStops are
RSS