Justice officials have proposed amending the law on minor graft offenses to grant deferred prosecution or more lenient sentences, after people criticized public prosecutors for pressing charges against a trash collector who gave a rice cooker he found discarded to an elderly woman.
Much of the public anger was directed at the Taipei Shilin Prosecutors’ Office, who charged a trash collector surnamed Huang (黃) with corruption, saying he misappropriated an old, used rice cooker when he gave it to an elderly woman who scavenges garbage for a living.
Recyclers estimated that the rice cooker only had a remaining monetary value of NT$32.
Photo: Taipei Times
Huang in July found a rice cooker while collecting trash, which he took home. As it still worked, he gave it to the woman so she could use it to prepare meals.
After an investigation, Shilin prosecutors last week charged Huang with breaching Article 6 of the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例), or “stealing or misappropriating private property or equipment that is in his or her possession due to official position but not for official use,” as trash collectors are city employees.
Prosecutors asked the court for a lenient sentence, as Huang admitted to giving the woman the rice cooker and his offense was deemed to be very minor.
Ministry of Justice officials on Saturday issued a statement saying that they were aware of the case and are open to feedback from all sectors, adding that they had proposed an amendment where those with “minor corruption offenses” could apply for a reduced term or suspended sentence.
The ministry said it has also begun examining legal scopes and procedures to better define the criteria for a deferred prosecution, so prosecutors could have more flexibility when assessing cases.
Meanwhile, Cho Hsin-chen (卓昕岑), who is in charge of Huang’s trash collection unit in Taipei’s Beitou District (北投), said that the regulation against taking recyclable materials during trash collection for personal use is well known and had been drilled into all personnel.
Cho said he also gave Huang one demerit.
Huang has been a model employee for more than 30 years and was known as a serious worker, not contravening rules nor engaging in unlawful activities, he said, adding that Huang later felt remorse for his actions.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group
RSS