Members of youth rights and welfare groups and high-school students yesterday protested outside the Legislative Yuan in Taipei, urging the Ministry of Health and Welfare to amend what they called the “outdated” Child and Juvenile Welfare and Rights Protection Act (兒童及少年福利與權益保障法).
Since the act was enacted 15 years ago, no major amendment has been passed. The legislature’s Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee yesterday held a meeting to discuss amendments proposed by several legislators.
Before the meeting, about a dozen people held placards outside the legislature that read: “The act cannot wait, bring forth the comprehensive draft amendment bill” and “the protection of children and adolescents needs to be forward-looking, the legislative process shouldn’t be slow.”
Photo: Chen Chih-cheng, Taipei Times
“I keep seeing tragic news about children online, yet the laws meant to protect them have not been updated in years,” high-school student Lu Chen-shao (呂晨韶) said.
Facing emerging challenges such as cybersecurity, digital privacy and mental health issues, children need a systemic response, Lu said, adding that the ministry should propose comprehensive draft amendments for substantial progress.
The ministry in a public hearing in January last year proposed an amendment, but has not introduced any revised provisions, so government agencies lack legal basis to deal with relevant issues, Taiwan Alliance for Advancement of Youth Rights and Welfare deputy secretary-general Chang Yo-chia (張祐嘉) said.
Discussions on amending the act have continued for a year, but the progress is unclear and young people’s voices have been absent, EdYouth president Tsai Chi-yeh (蔡其曄) said.
Without a comprehensive draft bill by the government, the discussions cannot proceed, Tsai said.
The act is outdated in some aspects including mental health support and the protection of youth participation rights, he said.
The act struggles to address new world issues, such as data privacy and security threats in the rapidly evolving online environment, combined with insufficient on-campus mental health resources, which leave young people without immediate and comprehensive support systems when facing pressure or crises, Taiwan Youth Association for Democracy director Alice Yang (楊姿潁) said.
The groups urged the ministry to expedite the introduction of comprehensive draft amendments to the act for review by the legislature and the public, demanding that the legislative committee begin a clause-by-clause review immediately upon receiving the proposal.
The groups yesterday handed a symbolic petition envelope to Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators Lin Yue-chin (林月琴), committee convenor, and Fan Yun (范雲), as the lawmakers pledged to keep pushing for amendments to address the act’s shortcomings.
Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said at the committee meeting that there have been about 10 minor revisions to the act since its enactment in 2011.
To align the act with the spirit of Convention on the Rights of the Child, the ministry has been working on a major amendment bill since last year, and it would be proposed next month, Shih said.
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