There is no urgency to resolve the question of whether to abolish the death penalty, Minister of Justice Chiu Tai-san (邱太三) said yesterday, in response to questions in the legislature about his stance on the issue.
Chiu said Taiwan maintains the death penalty — both in law and in practice — and his ministry has decided to continue carrying out the execution of death row inmates after grave consideration.
However, Taiwan is aware of the views of the international community, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights — two international human rights covenants that Taiwan ratified in 2009, he said.
Any move to abolish capital punishment would be a complex process, Chiu said, adding that it has long been a contentious issue.
“I hope consensus can be forged through dialogue,” Chiu said at a legislative meeting, when asked whether his ministry planned to push for the abolition of the death penalty.
Ten days before Chiu took office on May 20, former minister of justice Luo Ying-shay (羅瑩雪) ordered the execution of one of the 43 death row inmates. Cheng Chieh (鄭捷), who killed four people on a Taipei mass rapid transit train in 2014, was executed by three gunshots to the back on May 11.
In other developments, Chiu expressed support for a proposed same-sex partnership act.
Chiu made the remarks when answering questions from Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Yu Mei-nu (尤美女).
Chiu said that the ministry has commissioned Tsinghua University to conduct an impact study, adding that his ministry would propose its version of the draft act in a timely manner.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
RSS