Taiwan: New justice minister should address death penalty

The person who succeeds Wang Ching-feng as minister of justice should make clear his or her stance on capital punishment.

On the surface, Wang stepped down because of her refusal to execute inmates on death row, but she was actually forced to bow to the public sentiment that criminals should be punished as a reprisal and that the death penalty is a guarantor of social order.

But why are there so many states in the world that have scrapped capital punishment? Are they putting more emphasis on the right of the criminals than of the victims? Taiwan was highly praised in the international community after it began moving on the path of phasing out the penalty despite changes in government.

Will the new justice minister set back this movement or try to convince the public of the need for its abolishment? Will the new minister sign the execution orders of the 44 inmates on death row immediately and all together after taking office? President Ma told his ministers to do their duties based on the law, which should include postponing the execution of the convicts when required by the law.

Taiwan has already incorporated into its law the U.N. Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which entitles inmates on death row to seek pardon or commutation of the sentence. All 44 convicts have appealed for commutation, but existing law is silent on how such appeals should be handled. Is this a reason to execute the victims? Taiwan's constitutional court has ruled twice on the issue of death penalty, but both rulings were handed down many years ago and the reasons they used to justify the death penalty are outdated, especially since Taiwan has adopted the U.N. Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Wang Ching-feng's resignation also highlighted the government's negligence in taking care of the victims of the crimes. The government can help victims get rid of their desire for revenge by helping them emerge from the shadow of crimes and regain their feet.

What we are most worried about is that the rulers would rather see the victims resent the criminals and support the government's crackdown on crime rather than use resources to take care of them.

Source: Focus Taiwan, March 16, 2010