Women’s and LGBT rights groups yesterday rallied in Taipei to urge the Judicial Yuan to decriminalize adultery.
“Adultery is still a crime under Taiwanese law that does not guarantee a happy marriage nor does it stop extramarital affairs,” Awakening Foundation chairwoman Chuang Chiao-ju (莊喬汝) said.
“In prosecuting adultery cases, women have been treated unfairly by the courts, and have received disproportionate punishment,” she said, referring to Article 239 of the Criminal Code on offenses against marriage and family, which allows for up to one year imprisonment for adultery.
Photo: CNA
“Taiwan should follow Japan and South Korea, as they have decriminalized adultery. It is still a crime in the world’s few very conservative nations, and Taiwan, unfortunately, is among them,” she added.
Protesters held a banner that read: “No prosecution for adultery, family happiness cannot depend on catching the adulterer in the act,” and gave a list of recommendations, including annulling Article 239, to Judicial Yuan officials.
On Tuesday next week, the Council of Grand Justices is to start hearing arguments on the question of decriminalizing adultery.
“Modern marriage should not be about possession, but must be based on the free will of two people to enter into wedlock. If their relationship ends, it is not the place of the state to intervene,” Taiwan Alliance to Promote Civil Partnership Rights, which promotes LGBTQ community and same-sex marriage issues, said in a statement.
The Awakening Foundation began pushing to decriminalize adultery 26 years ago, Chuang said.
“Through these long years, Taiwanese society and people’s attitudes have undergone great changes and made significant progress, but Article 239 has remained without any change since 1930,” she said.
As the courts favor a concept of “family harmony,” adultery cases can lead to charges against spouses and people outside the marriage, the foundation said, adding that a higher proportion of charges were filed against men, but more women have received guilty verdicts.
“For every 100 women found guilty and sentenced in adultery cases, only 81 men were. This shows that the law is very unfair against women,” Chuang said.
Members of the Taiwan Gender Equity Education Association, Taiwan Tongzhi Hotline Association and Humanistic Education Foundation also participated in the event.
The German city of Hamburg on Oct. 14 named a bridge “Kaohsiung-Brucke” after the Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung. The footbridge, formerly known as F566, is to the east of the Speicherstadt, the world’s largest warehouse district, and connects the Dar-es-Salaam-Platz to the Brooktorpromenade near the Port of Hamburg on the Elbe River. Timo Fischer, a Free Democratic Party member of the Hamburg-Mitte District Assembly, in May last year proposed the name change with support from members of the Social Democratic Party and the Christian Democratic Union. Kaohsiung and Hamburg in 1999 inked a sister city agreement, but despite more than a quarter-century of
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday expressed “grave concerns” after Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) reiterated the city-state’s opposition to “Taiwanese independence” during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強). In Singapore on Saturday, Wong and Li discussed cross-strait developments, the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Prime Minister Wong reiterated that Singapore has a clear and consistent ‘one China’ policy and is opposed to Taiwan independence,” it said. MOFA responded that it is an objective fact and a common understanding shared by many that the Republic of China (ROC) is an independent, sovereign nation, with world-leading
The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (MJIB) has been investigating nine shell companies working with Prince Holding Group, and the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office is seeking further prosecution of alleged criminals, a source said yesterday. The nine companies and three Taiwanese nationals were named by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Oct. 14 as Specially Designated Nationals as a result of a US federal court indictment. Prince Holding founder Chen Zhi (陳志) has been charged with fraud, conspiracy, money laundering and overseeing Prince Holding’s suspected forced-labor camps in Cambodia, the indictment says. Intelligence shared between Taiwan,
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
RSS