examinations, namely the Investigation Bureau, Criminal Investigation
Bureau, and the Military Police Command. But these agencies do not have
uniform standard operating procedures for polygraph examinations, and there
is no mechanism to review the results. As a result, many of their polygraph
examination results have varied widely. The Executive Yuan should set forth
consistent criteria for the training, qualification and the audit of polygraph
examiners to ensure and improve the accuracy of polygraph examinations.
Upon investigation and subsequent follow-up by the Control Yuan, the three
major agencies have coordinated to set forth standard operating procedures.
104. In criminal cases, the results of polygraph examinations requested by the
defendant or those of a key witness to prove innocence are decided by a judge
or prosecutor ex officio. For this, no specific judgment criteria is currently
applicable. Under the circumstances that the defendant is allowed to request
such an examination and the polygraph examination agency is allowed to
reject the request, the decision regarding whether the polygraph examination
results should serve as evidence appears at the same time to be both
discretionary and contradictory. If there is a lack of direct evidence, such as
physical evidence and exhibits, the authorities in Taiwan generally adopt the
polygraph examination (in which results are often disputable) as evidence to
determine criminal facts. This appears to be contrary to the Code of Criminal
Procedure for the discovery of truth and protection of human rights. Upon
investigation and subsequent follow-up by the Control Yuan, the Judicial Yuan
proposed a draft of amendments to the laws. Presently, the draft is still under
review at the Legislative Yuan.
105. The polygraph examination adopted in criminal procedures is can be defined
as an examination on what is known, thought, or believed in one’s mind, and
so the examination can be considered, in nature, to be a psychological
examination, and as such it infringes upon an individual’s inner freedom and
intentions and violates the individual’s personal rights even more so than the
violation of the defendant’s right to silence. In a criminal procedure, the
defendant is the party subject to the compulsory participation in the polygraph
examination. When facing search, detention and pursuit of criminal liability
by force of government power, the defendant under the huge pressure derived
therefrom is likely to agree to the judge or prosecutor’s demand for a
polygraph examination. Therefore, the examination result may not be entirely
genuine. If a prosecutor or judge asks a defendant to agree to take the
polygraph examination during investigation or trial, that would appear to
violate subparagraph 7, Paragraph 3 of Article 14 of the ICCPR, which
provides the minimum guarantee that the defendant is entitled to under the
Code of Criminal Procedure (that the defendant will not be compelled to testify
against himself or to confess guilt) and Article 16 of the Constitution about
citizens’ litigation rights. In addition, polygraph examinations are considered
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