The Cabinet yesterday approved a draft amendment that would extend crime victim support services to foreign workers and spouses regardless of nationality.
The amendment must pass the legislature before it becomes law.
“[The article was added] out of humanitarian concern. For this reason, we extended the services to [all] countries,” Minister of Justice Wang Ching-feng (王清峰) told a press conference after a Cabinet meeting.
TREATMENT
The amendment to the Crime Victims Protection Law (犯罪被害人保護法) would expand the protection measures that provide victims of crime with medical and psychological treatment, judicial proceedings and other support.
Currently only nationals, foreign spouses and residents from China, excluding Hong Kong and Macau, and their family members are entitled to the protection measures, on top of various types of compensation for medical treatment, funeral expenses, funding for families of the deceased to raise children and bereavement payments.
The approved amendment also suggested increasing the compensation from a maximum of NT$1.7 million (US$49, 249) to NT$2.1 million.
Victims of sexual assault, family violence and smuggling-related crimes would also be included in the scope of the amended law.
EMPOWERED
The amendment would empower the Ministry of Justice to establish a fund financed by its annual budget, benefits from prison industry programs, criminal proceeds and confiscated criminal property to maintain a stable source for the compensation fund.
Wang said the government spends an average of NT$58.8 million a year on the fund and estimated that the expansion of the scheme would cost the government an additional NT$47.5 million annually.
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