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  1. #21
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    Execution of death row inmates deliberated: Justice Minister

    Under pressure from a legislator to carry out executions of death row inmates, Minister of Justice Luo Ying-shay said Tuesday that her ministry will proceed cautiously in evaluating issues related to capital punishment.

    Kuomintang lawmaker Wu Yu-sheng questioned Luo at a legislative hearing on Tuesday on why a government that stresses governing based on the rule of law has yet to execute 45 death row inmates who have exhausted all possible judicial remedies.

    Wu said he was religious and felt bad about asking that death row inmates be executed, but he noted that capital punishment is legal in Taiwan and that there were currently 52 inmates on death row, some of whom were sentenced to death as long as 10 years ago.

    Challenged by Wu on whether the ministry would conduct the executions, Luo said it would, but she stressed that it would carry out its duties prudently.

    Luo said that since assuming her post, she has reviewed the cases of these death row prisoners to see whether they have applied for extraordinary appeals, constitutional interpretations or retrials for their cases.

    Wu countered, however, that only seven death row inmates are seeking legal remedies, while the other 45 are on the list for immediate execution, and he demanded that Luo promise to activate procedures for the execution of these convicts.

    Luo answered, "OK. We will follow our precedures."

    Premier Jiang Yi-huah said, meanwhile, that he has discussed issues related to executions with Luo and reached a consensus that the death penalty would be carried out in accordance with the law if death row inmates had exhausted all possible remedies.

    It will be up to the ministry, however, to decide when to carry out the executions, Jiang said.

    (Source: Focus Taiwan)
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  2. #22
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    Taiwan's justice minister resolute on capital punishment

    Taiwan's Ministry of Justice said Thursday that it will continue carrying out capital punishment lawfully and with discretion in spite of Amnesty International (AI) renewing its call for the abolishment of the death penalty worldwide.

    Taiwan executed 6 inmates convicted of violent crimes in April last year. Another 52 remain on death row, though there is reportedly no timetable for carrying out their sentences.

    Deputy Minister of Justice Chen Ming-tang said their sentences will be carried out with prudence and under the country's existing laws once the ministry has made sure they have not petitioned for a constitutional interpretation or made an extraordinary appeal for retrial.

    Defending Taiwan's treatment of death row inmates, he rejected comparisons with other countries because of "differences in laws and public sentiment" toward serious crimes.

    He also said that families of the inmates are allowed to visit at any time -- though he did not directly address AI's criticism of a policy that informs families of an execution only after it has been carried out.

    In its report on death sentences and executions in 2013, released Wednesday, London-based AI criticized Taiwan for the 6 executions last year and the passing of seven more death sentences despite the country's promise to take steps towards the elimination of the death penalty.

    Chiara Sangiorgio, a campaigner against capital punishment, further accused Taiwan of carrying out its death penalty in a way that does not conform to international laws because of a lack of transparency, including keeping the date of execution from family members.

    The government should inform inmates' families before the execution, she said, and notify lawyers as well as the public of the proceedings.

    http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.com/#ixzz2xNd64onY
    Last edited by Helen; 03-29-2014 at 02:08 PM.
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
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  3. #23
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    Taiwan Executes 5

    Taipei (AFP) - Taiwanese authorities said they executed five death-row inmates Tuesday, nearly a year after six prisoners were put to death.

    The justice ministry said the five were put to death in various parts of the island. They were the first executions ordered by Luo Ying-shay since she became justice minister last September.

    The inmates were anaesthetised and then shot, it said. There are now 47 prisoners on death row, according to the ministry.

    "The five were cold-blooded and cruel, devoid of conscience...they have left the family of the victims pains that could hardly be allayed," deputy justice minister Chen Ming-tang told reporters.

    The five, separately convicted on charges of murder, robbery and forced sex, had caused 11 deaths and left four injured, he said.

    The execution ruffled the feathers of the Taiwan Alliance to End Death Penalty, the group which has been active in pushing for the abolishment of death penalty.

    It alleged that the execution was aimed to help the embattled Ma Ying-jeou administration divert the public's attention away from the recent controversies of the service trade agreement with China and a new nuclear power plant that have prompted tens of thousands of people to take to Taipei's streets.

    Taiwan resumed executions in 2010 after a five-year hiatus, putting four people to death. There were five executions in 2011, six in 2012 and another six in 2013.

    But the government has defended the long-standing policy, citing polls that show that more than two-thirds of Taiwanese support capital punishment, believing it is a strong deterrent to violent crime.

    Taiwan reserves the death penalty for serious crimes including aggravated murder and kidnapping, but the political elite is divided about whether to retain it.

    The abolitionist debate was revived after judicial and military authorities came under fire over the execution of a soldier wrongly convicted in a child murder case.

    Chiang Kuo-ching, a 21-year-old executed by shooting in 1997, was posthumously acquitted in a military court in 2011 of the rape and murder of a five-year-old girl.

    He had insisted on his innocence and said he was coerced by a group of air force intelligence officers into confessing.

    https://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/23...h-row-inmates/

  4. #24
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    Another article including details on the executed

    Five death-row inmates executed

    Taipei (CNA) - Justice officials executed five death-row inmates Tuesday in Taiwan's first executions of the year.

    The Ministry of Justice said convicts Tai Wen-ching, Teng Kuo-liang, Liu Yen-kuo, Tu Ming-hsiung and Tu Ming-lang were separately executed by firing squads under the first capital punishment order signed by Justice Minister Luo Ying-shay, who took office Sept. 30 last year.

    The five inmates were found guilty of 11 separate murders, said Deputy Justice Minister Chen Ming-tang in a press conference Tuesday evening.

    Chen maintained Taiwan's stance on keeping the death penalty but reducing its frequency of use, citing his ministry's efforts to review relevant laws.

    Tai was sentenced to death after he killed a taxi driver in 2002 while serving a life sentence in a minimum-security prison for another murder, while Liu was convicted of killing a police officer during a robbery in 1997.

    Teng was given a death sentence for drowning a woman and her son in 2009 over the money he owed to her.

    The Tu brothers were given a death sentence for killing two Taiwanese and three Chinese citizens in the Chinese province of Guangdong in 2001.

    The five executions were carried out in Taipei, Taichung, Tainan and Hualien, according to the ministry.

    The number of death-row inmates stands at 47 after the execution, including two inmates whose cases are being retried. The last execution took place April 19, 2013, when six violent criminals were killed.

    http://focustaiwan.tw/news/asoc/201404290035.aspx

  5. #25
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    Death penalty sought for Taipei metro killer

    New Taipei prosecutors on Monday indicted a man who stabbed to death four passengers on the Taipei metro system in May and recommended that he be given the death penalty because of the brutality of the crime and the suspect's lack of remorse.

    The suspect, 21-year-old university student Cheng Chieh, was charged with four counts of murder and 22 counts of attempted murder for his actions on a moving subway train just before the evening rush hour on May 21.

    The indictment was handed down as Cheng's two-month detainment period expired Monday.

    In defending their request for the death penalty in the indictment, prosecutors described Cheng's behavior as "mass murder," and said that the incident caused collective panic in society and put people on guard when taking public transportation.

    They also said his actions had spawned several potential copycats threatening to kill people on public buses or the subway system.

    A thorough assessment of Cheng conducted by National Taiwan University Hospital concluded that Cheng has no mental disorders or deficiencies, meaning he is not eligible under Article 19 of Taiwan's Criminal Code to be exempt from punishment for the offense or have the sentence reduced because of mental incompetency, prosecutors said.

    In their 8,000-word indictment, prosecutors also focused on the brutality and cruelty of the stabbings, saying that the surveillance footage showed a "scene from hell."

    Cheng was seen repeatedly stabbing his victims and even toying with them without showing the slightest sliver of humanity, and he even admitted during his mental evaluation that he felt pleased to have the fate of the passengers in his hands, prosecutors said.

    He even said that he had hoped to find a place to rest at the station so he could continue the spree, prosecutors said.

    According to the indictment, the attacks were premeditated rather than done on a whim and Cheng deliberately chose the subway line on which the attacks occurred to bring about the most casualties possible.

    He was determined to carry out the killings because failure to do so would have negated his being, prosecutors said, and the brutality of the attacks brought to light the suspect's dangerous nature.

    Cheng has shown no remorse since being detained and has not apologized to the victims or the families of his victims, leaving prosecutors no alternative but to ask for the death penalty for his heinous acts, prosecutors argued in the indictment.

    The prosecutors also explained in detail the suspect's motives, saying his problems may have started in elementary school when he had disputes with female classmates that left a lasting impression on him and led him to vow to kill for "revenge."

    They described Cheng as being "indifferent to social conventions, self-centered, antisocial and narcissistic," epitomized by his lack of empathy for others.

    In junior high school he had a clash with his teacher, and pocketed a knife for a month looking for an opportunity to stab him, they said.

    Due to his inability to gain acceptance among mainstream groups at school, he gradually developed a sense of nihilism, feeling that life was difficult to cope with, prosecutors said.

    Despite his problems, Cheng lived up to the academic expectations of his family and teachers and made it into a senior high school in New Taipei.

    From his first year at university, Cheng penned essays on his blog explaining why he had made a pledge to kill and posted articles with killing as the main theme, they added.

    To fulfill his commitment to kill, which had grown stronger, Cheng enrolled in the Chung Cheng Institute of Technology in 2011 because he wanted to receive military training there.

    The school kicked him out in 2013 because he failed academically and physically, dealing him a severe blow, which may have spurred him to act more quickly on his pledge.

    In keeping with his parents' wishes, he transferred to Tunghai University the same year, but he continued to flounder academically.

    One of Cheng's senior high school classmates brought his articles to the attention of a school counselor, who forwarded them to the university.

    The university put him under investigation and was on the verge of expelling him.

    The pressure of the investigation, his poor academic performance, his imminent dismissal and his long-term suicidal and nihilistic ideas prompted him to move up his killing plan to the eve of his expulsion, prosecutors said.

    http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-s...00053&cid=1103

  6. #26
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    Taiwan court sentences subway killer to death

    A former college student was sentenced to death in Taiwan Friday for killing four people and wounding more than 20 others in a subway stabbing spree that shocked the island.

    Cheng Chieh, 22, will face a firing squad after he was convicted on four counts of murder and 22 counts of attempted murder for the carnage in May last year, the first fatal attack on Taipei's subway system since it launched in 1996.

    "The judges sentenced Cheng to death as his means were brutal and his crimes were severe while he had shown no remorse," Lien Yu-chun, a spokeswoman for the New Taipei district court, told AFP.

    A court statement said that Cheng's crimes "angered gods and men" and that the sentence would safeguard society.

    "I am pleased and comforted by the ruling," said Lee Ruei-hsiang, the brother of one of the victims.

    "I think it would be unacceptable to everyone if he was not sentenced to death for committing such a horrendous crime in public."

    Chiou Mu-sen, the husband of another victim, urged Cheng to donate his organs after his execution to make up for his "terrible mistake."

    Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for Cheng, saying psychological evaluations showed that he was not suffering from any mental disorder when he committed the crime.

    Cheng, who had pleaded guilty to the charges, was expelled by his university after the attack and was described by prosecutors as "anti-society, narcissistic, immature and pessimistic".

    Local media said Cheng had been obsessed with online killing games and had written horror stories.

    Prosecutors said that he had vowed to carry out revenge killings after having trouble with classmates in elementary school.

    Cheng's parents initially asked for him to be sentenced to death, calling their son's actions "unforgivable".

    However, they recently wrote to the judges saying that they were willing to accompany him to receive counselling "if there is still a chance for him", the district court said.

    Cheng pleaded guilty in his first court appearance last August, nearly three months after he used a long knife to stab travellers on a subway train, sending hundreds of people screaming and fleeing for help.

    When the train pulled in to the next station, Cheng fled and was chased by police before being kicked to the ground by a passenger and overwhelmed by a group of security officials and commuters.

    The incident shocked Taiwan, which is proud of its low levels of violent crime.

    Cheng, who has been in custody since his arrest, can appeal the court's ruling.

    There are currently 48 prisoners on death row in Taiwan, all of whom will face a firing squad -- the means by which the death penalty is implemented on the island.

    Taiwan resumed executions in 2010 after a five-year hiatus following the execution of a soldier wrongly convicted in a child murder case.

    https://en-maktoob.news.yahoo.com/ta...120322123.html

  7. #27
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    Taiwan not ready to abolish death penalty, says Ma

    Taiwan's government is currently unable to abolish capital punishment because society still needs time to reach a consensus on the issue, presidential spokesman Charles Chen cited President Ma Ying-jeou as saying Sunday.

    Chen's remark came after some interpreted a comment by Ma a day earlier as a sign that his administration might be considering abolishing the death penalty.

    When asked by a reporter on his view of rising calls against the scrapping of the death penalty following the recent murder of an eight-year-old girl by an intruder at a Taipei school, Ma said opposing views have been heard for quite some time — some people believe that capital punishment does not provide a deterrent, while others believe that abolishing the punishment will encourage crime.

    "I think we had better observe this for some more time," Ma said.

    On Sunday, Chen cited Ma as saying that the government is unable to scrap capital punishment at the the present time, but will continue to work toward reducing its use.

    When meeting recently with a British all-party parliamentary group in favor of scrapping the death penalty, Ma noted that the majority of the people in Taiwan are in favor of capital punishment, Chen said.

    The president also cited a Ministry of Justice poll in 2012 showing that 76.7% of the respondents are against scrapping the death penalty, while over 85% believe that abolishing the death penalty would affect public security, Chen said.

    http://www.wantchinatimes.com/news-s...00051&cid=1103

  8. #28
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    Justice Ministry mum on reports that six convicts to be executed

    Taipei (CNA) - Taiwan's Ministry of Justice on Friday refused to comment on reports that several inmates on death row were to be executed later in the day.

    Several media outlets in Taiwan, including CNA, are reporting that six inmates -- three from Taipei prison and one each from Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung prisons -- will be put to death later Friday, citing unidentified sources.

    There are 48 inmates on death row in Taiwan. If the executions take place as rumored, it will be the second time Justice Minister Lo Ying-shay (羅瑩雪) has authorized the use of capital punishment since she took office in September 2013.

    She last authorized the execution of six death row inmates in April 2014.

    Opinion polls in Taiwan have shown a majority of Taiwanese supportive of capital punishment, and calls for the government to more actively enforce the death penalty picked up after the murder of a second-grader by a random attacker on a school campus last week.

    At a legislative hearing on Wednesday, several legislators demanded that the Justice Ministry expedite the executions of death row inmates to deter random attackers.

    Vice Justice Minister Chen Ming-tang (陳明堂) said at the time that eight of 48 inmates on death row have asked to be put to death quickly.

    A similar situation occurred in December 2012 when the murder of a 10-year-boy by a random attacker on Dec. 1 drew a public outcry, and the Justice Ministry executed six death row inmates three weeks later.

    http://focustaiwan.tw/news/asoc/201506050018.aspx

  9. #29
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    Six convicts executed in Taiwan

    Six convicts who killed a combined nine people in cold blood were executed on Friday, the Ministry of Justice confirmed.

    Justice Minister Lo Ying-shay (羅瑩雪) signed the execution orders on Thursday for the six death row inmates put to death on Friday, the ministry said.

    Three of the inmates were being held in Taipei prison and the others were incarcerated in Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung prisons.

    It was the second time Lo approved the execution of death row convicts since she assumed her post in September 2013. She last signed an execution order in April 2014.

    The ministry defended the executions by saying that more than 80 percent of people in Taiwan are in favor of maintaining the death penalty.

    Before the public has reached a consensus and the law in Taiwan is revised to abolish the death penalty, the ministry will continue to enforce the law in the most cautious manner, it said, arguing that there was no reason for blocking the executions.

    Deputy Justice Minister Chen Ming-tang (陳明堂) said consideration of executing the six started in mid-May when the ministry reviewed the situations of all 48 inmates on death row in Taiwan to see if there were still judicial remedies that applied to them.

    The number was cut to 25 after the review, and six were selected based on the severity and brutality of their crimes.

    Three of the six death inmates -- Cheng Chin-wen (鄭金文), Huang Chu-wan (黃主旺) and Wang Hsiu-fang (王秀昉) -- made extraordinary appeals for stays of execution, but they were rejected by the Supreme Prosecutors Office.

    Chen also said that "none of the six" donated their organs after being put to death.

    He acknowledged that the medical establishment and human rights groups still had misgivings about organ donations by death row inmates.

    "This was why the ministry has adopted a conservative attitude over the past one or two years and no longer surveyed death row inmates (on their willingness to donate organs)," he said.

    Asked if the executions were expedited after the murder of a second-grader by a random attacker at a Taipei elementary school last week, Chen said that "this was not necessarily the case."

    The six men executed included Huang Chu-wan, who was convicted for strangling his victim and burying him alive due to election disputes.

    There were also Wang Hsiu-fang, who killed a woman and her three-year daughter in an argument and dumped their bodies, and Cheng Chin-wen, who killed two people because he couldn't repay the NT$500,000 debt owed to one of them.

    The other three were Wang Yu-lung (王裕隆), who killed his former girlfriend and her friend, Wang Chun-chin (王俊欽), who robbed taxi drivers, sexually assaulted several female taxi drivers and killed one of them, and Tsao Tian-shou (曹添壽), a taxi driver who sexually assaulted a junior high school student and later killed her and dumped her body in a remote area.

    After the executions, there are still 42 inmates on death row in Taiwan.

    A civic group supporting the abolishment of capital punishment went to the Ministry of Justice on Friday to protest the executions.

    Led by Lin Hsin-yi (林欣怡), chief executive officer of the Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty (廢死聯盟), around 30 members raised small white posters emblazoned with the words "find the cause of the crime to fix the illness," and "face the illness together."

    They criticized the ministry for "executing the death penalty randomly" to respond to the public outcry over a series of tragedies.

    But several people supporting capital punishment were also on hand to confront the alliance members and throw eggs at the protesters, but were stopped by the intervention of police.

    http://focustaiwan.tw/news/asoc/201506050033.aspx

  10. #30
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    Taiwan high court rejects death row inmate’s retrial motion

    Taiwan’s high court on Monday rejected a motion by the island’s longest-serving death row prisoner for a retrial, saying the new evidence presented by his lawyers was not sufficient.

    Chiou Ho-shun, 55, has been on death row since 1989 after being found guilty of kidnapping and murdering a six-year-old boy and robbing and killing a woman.

    His lawyers lodged a motion with the high court early this month after two retired police officers backed Chiou’s claims that he confessed to the crimes after being tortured.

    The officers presented their evidence to the top government watchdog the Control Yuan in 2013, which recommended an “extraordinary appeal” to prosecutors.

    But the appeal was rejected late last year, prompting rights group the Judicial Reform Foundation to seek the retrial on June 9.

    “The new evidence (presented by the lawyers) was not sufficient to clear or reduce the sentence of Chiou… therefore there is no excuse for a retrial,” the high court said in a statement Monday.

    The lawyers at the Judicial Reform Foundation lambasted the ruling.

    “The ruling in a rush was unacceptable,” its spokesman Kao Jung-chih told AFP.

    “It took them only 12 days to reject the appeal, showing they had not re-examined the flawed rulings in the past and did not care about his life at all,” Kao said, adding that the foundation will appeal to the supreme court.

    Chiou has said he was beaten, given electric shocks, forced to sit on ice and held blindfolded in a small isolated cell during the month-long police investigation.

    His appeals have been repeatedly rejected, with the high court giving a final ruling three years ago that the death sentence should stand.

    Amnesty International has called the case “a stain on Taiwan’s justice system”.

    Chiou is among 42 death-row inmates.

    Taiwan resumed executions in 2010 after a five-year hiatus, putting 27 prisoners to death since then including six early this month.

    http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/2015/...etrial-motion/

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