|
Teacher Wang, Po-Chi was interviewed by ETtoday: Death penalty? no?
|
2024/4/20
|
| |
Is the death penalty unconstitutional? The Justices’ Direct Match Oral Debate on April 23
On January 17, 2024, an announcement by the Constitutional Court once again ignited the heated discussion on "abolition of death" in Taiwan. The announcement mentioned that an oral debate court will be held on April 23 regarding the "death penalty system" to focus on two core issues: first, whether the death penalty is unconstitutional; second, if the death penalty is deemed constitutional, which types of crimes and the defendant complied with due process. For the Abolition of Death Alliance, this not only represents an unprecedented opportunity, but also a challenge. This is the first time in many years that their application for constitutional interpretation has been officially accepted and a court hearing has been scheduled. They look forward to a "straight-ball showdown between support and opposition."
LIN,CHUN-HUNG, the lawyer appointed by death row inmate CHIU,HAN-SHUN, said that whether it is the issue 1 "the unconstitutionality of the death penalty" or the issue 2 "if the death penalty is constitutional, the due process of imposing the death penalty", for the 37 death row inmates who have been sentenced to death but have not yet been executed, They are all opportunities to fight for the right to survive.
At the same time, LU,TING, a representative of the victim's family, seriously pointed out, "The criminal was sentenced to death but was not executed, which is a kind of secondary harm to the family!" Hsu, Fu-shen, a professor of the Department of Administration Police of the National Police University, is also a Taiwan Victim Human Rights Associayion. The vice chairman of the Service Association suggested that policymakers should carefully consider the feelings of the victims' families and think twice before taking action.
In recent years, in all official and private discussions and polls on the "abolition of death penalty" issue, the proportion of those in favor of the death penalty is still far higher than the public opinion for abolition of the death penalty. Against this backdrop of public opinion, is it appropriate for Taiwan at this stage to move towards the abolition of death? This discussion has attracted widespread attention from all walks of life. "ETtoday" conducted in-depth interviews with people from all walks of life to discuss their opinions and positions on whether the death penalty should be abolished or not.
In this court, taking the 37 death penalty cases headed by WANG,HSIN-FU as an example, the defendants in the cases have not yet been executed. These include HUANG,LIN-KAI, who committed the murder of his ex-girlfriend and his mother in 2012, CHIU,HAN-SHUN, who was imprisoned for the longest time and was tortured, WANG,HSIN-FU, who was sentenced to death for killing a police officer, and those who were suspected of killing his mother and mother-in-law in 2008 and 2009. Mr. He, LIN,YU-JU, the "only female death row inmate" known as the "Amazing Wife". Some of them have been detained for long periods of time for serious crimes, and some have been tortured.
The efforts and challenges of the "Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty"
Since 2005, the Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty has been promoting the abolition of the death penalty through petitions for constitutional interpretation, "using constitutional interpretation to solve problems." Alliance CEO LIN,HSIN-I recalled, "In 2006, for the first time, death row inmate CHUNG,TE-SHU filed a constitutional interpretation Petition. In 2010, as rumors of reinstating death warrants resumed, the alliance accelerated its actions. On March 11 and 29 of that year, they submitted petitions to the Constitutional Court claiming that "the death penalty violates the right to life and the right to litigate." However, because the submitted information was incomplete, the Judicial Yuan required supplements and corrections within 10 days. Within the correction period, the then Ministry of Justice TSENG,YUNG-FU issued execution warrants, resulting in the execution of four death row inmates on April 30. On May 28 of the same year, the justice decided not to accept the two claims.
LIN,HSIN-I was deeply impressed and shocked by this incident. She talked about one of the executed prisoners who had indeed committed a serious crime. After the verdict, he had been forgiven by the victim’s family and showed sincere repentance. “I can feel his regret and his desire to treat the victim and his family,” she said. His family's wish to make amends. "Unfortunately, the speed of updating the documents could not keep up with the issuance of the execution order, and unfortunately, his life was lost. This incident strengthened LIN,HSIN-I's determination to continue promoting the abolition of death penalty, and she has never considered giving up.
From the Secretary Reform Association to the Abolition of Death Alliance, LIN,HSIN-I came into contact with nearly 100 death row inmates. She found that some people have a very strong sense of remorse, but some people may not understand their crimes because of illness. "When he does not understand his crimes, there is no way to repent!" She observed that society often only sees To the darkest and most depraved moments in these people's lives, "But is a bad person really a bad person all the time? Does immediately imposing the death penalty on them when they are willing to repent really solve all problems?"
LIN,HSIN-I, who graduated from the Department of Social Work of Fu Jen Catholic University, reflected: "We need to understand the criminal's growth background and the reasons for committing the crime. This is the key to understanding why criminals become criminals. Only through this understanding can we find better ways to improve society. A good way to make society better."
She added: "There is nothing special about the members of the Abolition of Death Alliance. They want a safer and better society just like the general public. But after the death penalty kills criminals, does the problem really solve it? Kill them. Is there nothing left? Does our understanding of crime and criminals stop here? So, rather than fighting for the rights of death row prisoners, we are fighting for a better future for the entire society.”
"Anti-abolition" public opinion is high. Ministry of Justice: "Death penalty" system is consistent with the constitution
A poll updated by the Ministry of Justice in 2020 shows that, based on 2002 data from the Super Opinion Polling Company, 21.2% of the public supports the abolition of the death penalty, while 76.7% oppose the abolition of the death penalty. Although 82.8% of the public agreed with the new penalty of "life imprisonment without parole", only 42.1% agreed with "life imprisonment without parole", which was less than the 56.5% who opposed the "alternative to the death penalty".
In December 2023, a tragedy occurred in New Taipei City, in which a junior high school student was killed by having his neck cut by a classmate, which aroused social attention on the punishment of major crimes such as homicide. For this reason, a relevant survey conducted by "ETtoday Poll Cloud" showed that 73.5% of the people do not support or strongly do not support the abolition of the death penalty, while only 21.8% support or relatively support the abolition of the death penalty, and 4.6% of the people said they do not know. Or no opinion.
Minister of Justice TSAI,CHING-HSIANG executed the death penalty once each in 2018 and 2020, but did not carry out the death penalty again in the following four years. This aroused the questioning of Kuomintang legislator WU,TSUNG-HSIEN , who believed that this was a technical abolition of death. In response, TSAI,CHING-HSIANG publicly responded that it has nothing to do with personal factors and is in full compliance with the law. As long as all relief procedures have been completed, the death penalty should be executed.
Officials from the Ministry of Justice further explained that according to the "Key Points for Reviewing the Execution of Death Penalty Cases" promulgated in 1999 and revised in 2018, it must be confirmed that the defendant in the death penalty case has received the judgment and that all relief procedures, including extraordinary appeals, have been completed before the Supreme Procuratorate can Submit the case to the Legal Department for approval. As for whether Taiwan should abolish the death penalty system? As an administrative agency, the Ministry of Justice will administer in accordance with the law and will argue in the Constitutional Court that the current death penalty system does not violate the Constitution.
The Ministry of Justice issued a press release on April 16, emphasizing that "the death penalty system is constitutional and has submitted a statement of intent for oral debate." The content mentioned that "the death penalty issue is highly controversial in our country. Without a consensus in society, it suddenly Declaring the death penalty system unconstitutional may trigger domestic social opposition and conflicts, infringe upon legislative decisions, and cross the boundaries of the separation of powers. The Constitutional Court should take into account the assessment of the consequences of interpretation and should not lead the formation of criminal policies through constitutional judgments to avoid triggering the constitutional organs. conflicts and domestic social unrest.”
The deterrent effect of executions? US study: 4 years of moratorium, homicides surged by 150
HSU,SHAO-CHAN, chairman of the TAIWAN LILY JUSTICE ASSOCIATION, strongly criticized the justice: "Are they 'falsifying the name of human rights and abolition of death'?" He said that this move triggered public outrage, "Many groups are about to explode. , This is "knowing the law, playing the game, and practicing the law." This is simply illegal! Can Taiwan's laws be allowed to be trampled by the Supreme Court? " He questioned, "When more than 80% of Taiwanese people support the death penalty, the Supreme Court will Who is the judge to decide the unconstitutionality of the death penalty?" He warned in good faith that if the decision to abolish the death penalty is ultimately deemed constitutional, it will trigger large-scale protests and may even attract international attention.
Wang, Po-Chi, an associate professor in the Department of Criminal Justice of Ming Chuan University, cited research from many American universities to support the deterrent effect of the death penalty. He mentioned that a study by the University of Colorado found that each execution of the death penalty can reduce homicides by five; a study by Emory University in Atlanta also showed that each execution of the death penalty can prevent 18 homicides. He also mentioned that after Illinois suspended the execution of the death penalty in 2000, there were an increase of 150 homicides in four years, which showed a direct correlation between the suspension of the death penalty and the increase in crime rates.
Wang, Po-Chi further explained that if the Constitutional Court declares that "the death penalty is unconstitutional," it will face several challenges. First, the justices have to cope with the possible increase in workload; secondly, the prison capacity may be a problem; thirdly, it may cause strong dissatisfaction among the people; finally, if there are no appropriate supporting measures, it may lead to chaos within the society and form " Fighting each other within the network" situation.
Hsu, Fu-shen, vice chairman of the Taiwan Victim Human Rights Associayion and a professor at the Department of Administration Police at the Central Police University, participated in a mock constitutional court in 2016. The focus of the debate at that time was "whether the death penalty is unconstitutional."
At that time, Hsu, Fu-shen conducted analysis from eight perspectives, including humanitarianism, criminal policy, judicial practice, victims, economic benefits, social psychology, international trends, and opinion poll position observations.
He believes that in Taiwanese society, the death penalty is still an indispensable means of social control, and we have to accept the fact that "the death penalty is a necessary evil in current society." This also shows that in the current penal system, the death penalty is still regarded as suitable.
In a situation where society has yet to reach a consensus, if the death penalty is to be decided by 15 justices, Professor Hsu, Fu-shen called on the public opinion and the emotions of the victims’ families to be carefully considered, especially when evaluating whether the death penalty system infringes upon human rights. dignity and the inalienable right to life. Finally, he emphasized that rehabilitation protection, victim protection, and judicial reform should be continuously strengthened. "When every incident occurs, where is the exit for society? I hope the justice will think twice before making a judgment!"
|
| |
 Download
|
| |
| Back |
|
