Minister of Justice Morley Shih (
Shih said the ministry would hold a meeting in a month to solicit the views of experts and to discuss whether caning should be introduced as a form of punishment, particularly for convicted rapists, based on a variety of factors such as human rights protection and social values.
His comments came in response to a suggestion made by several legislators last week that serial rapists should be caned in addition to serving prison terms as a means of remedying their deviant behavior.
The legislators made the suggestion in the wake of the rape of a medical student who was abducted near the MRT's Jientan Station in Shilin on March 11. Two suspects have been arrested, one of whom is also suspected of raping a 60-year-old female taxi driver shortly before his arrest last Saturday.
Shih said the ministry would also decide within a month whether the three-month assessment period for electronic monitoring of paroled rapists should be shortened to less than two weeks.
Last November the ministry approved a decree requiring paroled rapists to wear electronic devices that monitor their behavior. However, the devices are to be used only after a three-month assessment period from the date of a rapist's release on parole.
Several lawmakers have questioned the long gap, with Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Lo Shih-hsiung (
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