More than 25,000 people have endorsed a proposal calling for a blanket death penalty for child abusers, after a one-year-old boy died allegedly from abuse while in foster care.
The proposal, posted by a person called Lu I-shan (呂易珊) on the government-administered Public Policy Online Participation Network Platform, states that people who abuse children and cause physical harm to them should be subject to heavier criminal punishment, while those whose abuse leads to children’s death should be sentenced to death without exception.
As of yesterday evening, the proposal had received support from 25,320 people, surpassing the threshold required for an official response from the Ministry of Justice.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
While most supported the proposal, some said that child abusers should be lynched first then put to death the same way the Singaporean government has done.
Justice ministry officials are obligated to respond by May 14.
Minister of Justice Tsai Ching-hsiang (蔡清祥) yesterday told reporters that the Criminal Code has already stipulated that a person who attempts to take the life of another could be sentenced to death.
Circumstances in each case would have to be reviewed to determine whether the alleged offenders had murderous intent, Tsai said.
“We can discuss all the opinions from the private sector in a more rational manner once relevant bills are in the legislative process,” he said.
Tsai was asked about the debate scheduled at the Constitutional Court on April 23 over whether the death penalty should be abolished. Some are concerned the court could rule in favor of ending the death penalty with a majority of legal experts supporting it.
“The ministry’s position is that we follow the laws. As long as death penalty is still the law of the land, we will enforce it after a verdict is finalized and all the remedial procedures are completed,” the ministry said.
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