The Executive Yuan on Thursday approved a draft amendment that would increase the maximum penalty for child abuse — including abandonment, physical or psychological abuse — to NT$600,000.
Meanwhile, the maximum penalty for selling alcohol or betel nuts to children would be raised to NT$100,000, according to the proposed amendment to the Protection of Children and Youths Welfare and Rights Act (兒童及少年福利與權益保障法).
Medical staff, social workers, police and teachers would face a fine of up to NT$60,000 if they fail to report a suspected case of abuse, the draft bill proposed, stating that police could ask prosecutors to investigate without any evidence of a crime if a situation is deemed urgent.
Social and Family Affairs Administration Director Chien Hui-chuan (簡慧娟) said that one of the draft bill’s main aims is to involve law enforcement in child protection at an early stage.
When social workers encounter difficulties visiting a family home, the whereabouts of a child is unknown, or criminal activity involving a child is believed to have occurred or be taking place, prosecutors would be able to investigate after receiving a police report to that effect, she said.
Another aim is to establish a database of individuals convicted of abusing children, Chien said.
According to the draft, child care institutions would be required to suspend unfit staff immediately pending an investigation, as well as notify the authorities of staff transfers and recruitment.
Failure to follow these rules could result in a fine of NT$50,000 to NT$250,000.
In extreme cases an institution could be closed down or have its license revoked.
In addition, all nursery centers would be required to install video surveillance cameras, the draft states.
About 90 percent of nursery centers have already installed surveillance systems, administration Deputy Director Su Li-chiung (蘇麗瓊) said.
The draft would be submitted to the Legislative Yuan and reviewed alongside draft amendments to the Criminal Code to increase penalties for child abuse, as proposed by lawmakers last month.
Under the draft amendments to the Criminal Code, perpetrators would be subject to the death penalty, life in prison or a prison sentence of more than 10 years in cases where a child dies as a result of abuse.
Currently, perpetrators of child abuse are often tried on charges of injury resulting in death instead of homicide.
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
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
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
RSS