The Cabinet approved a draft act on the preservation of sites of injustice on Thursday, defining the purpose, approval procedures and preservation methods for such sites.
The draft also stipulates penalties of six months to five years in prison and fines from NT$500,000 to NT$20 million (US$15,277 to US$611,060) for damaging structures or relics at public sites of injustice.
Deputy Minister of Culture Wang Shi-si (王時思) told a news conference that sites of injustice are locations where human rights violations took place under authoritarian rule, with “historical and educational significance for transitional justice.”
Photo: Taipei Times
Key points of the draft include investigation and review procedures by the Ministry of Culture, the formation of a review committee for major decisions and a range of preservation methods based on site conditions.
Preservation methods such as historical markers, digital reconstruction, periodic or on-request openings and commemorative events would be used, and restoring or reconstructing original structures, if they exist, would be prioritized, the draft says.
Public land or building management agencies must draft preservation plans within two years of the announcement, with possible extensions available.
For private sites, the bill says that it would respect owners’ wishes, minimize property right infringements and offer incentives or subsidies for preservation.
Wang said 42 public injustice sites were approved before the Transitional Justice Commission’s dissolution in 2022.
The remaining 64 are expected to be announced by 2026, with the Ministry of Culture completing preliminary reviews for 11 of them by June that year, including important locations from the White Terror and 228 Incident periods.
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