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.
Alain Robert, known as the "French Spider-Man," praised Alex Honnold as exceptionally well-prepared after the US climber completed a free solo ascent of Taipei 101 yesterday. Robert said Honnold's ascent of the 508m-tall skyscraper in just more than one-and-a-half hours without using safety ropes or equipment was a remarkable achievement. "This is my life," he said in an interview conducted in French, adding that he liked the feeling of being "on the edge of danger." The 63-year-old Frenchman climbed Taipei 101 using ropes in December 2004, taking about four hours to reach the top. On a one-to-10 scale of difficulty, Robert said Taipei 101
Taiwanese and US defense groups are collaborating to introduce deployable, semi-autonomous manufacturing systems for drones and components in a boost to the nation’s supply chain resilience. Taiwan’s G-Tech Optroelectronics Corp subsidiary GTOC and the US’ Aerkomm Inc on Friday announced an agreement with fellow US-based Firestorm Lab to adopt the latter’s xCell, a technology featuring 3D printers fitted in 6.1m container units. The systems enable aerial platforms and parts to be produced in high volumes from dispersed nodes capable of rapid redeployment, to minimize the risk of enemy strikes and to meet field requirements, they said. Firestorm chief technology officer Ian Muceus said
MORE FALL: An investigation into one of Xi’s key cronies, part of a broader ‘anti-corruption’ drive, indicates that he might have a deep distrust in the military, an expert said China’s latest military purge underscores systemic risks in its shift from collective leadership to sole rule under Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), and could disrupt its chain of command and military capabilities, a national security official said yesterday. If decisionmaking within the Chinese Communist Party has become “irrational” under one-man rule, the Taiwan Strait and the regional situation must be approached with extreme caution, given unforeseen risks, they added. The anonymous official made the remarks as China’s Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia (張又俠) and Joint Staff Department Chief of Staff Liu Zhenli (劉振立) were reportedly being investigated for suspected “serious
American climber Alex Honnold is to attempt a free climb of Taipei 101 today at 9am, with traffic closures around the skyscraper. To accommodate the climb attempt and filming, the Taipei Department of Transportation said traffic controls would be enforced around the Taipei 101 area. If weather conditions delay the climb, the restrictions would be pushed back to tomorrow. Traffic controls would be in place today from 7am to 11am around the Taipei 101 area, the department said. Songzhi Road would be fully closed in both directions between Songlian Road and Xinyi Road Sec 5, it said, adding that bidirectional traffic controls would
RSS