nationwide, and simultaneous transcription services were promoted to all courts,
with a list of simultaneous transcribers sent to the courts for reference. The NHRC
subsequently sent a letter to the Judicial Yuan, requesting that the Judicial Yuan
provide the actual number of sign language and simultaneous transcription
services used. According to the Judicial Yuan, in 2019, courts of the first and
second instance used sign language services 28 times. The number of times
simultaneous transcription services were used was unknown, because no
statistical data had been collected.
68.
The Citizen Judge System will be implemented effective in 2023, and persons
with disabilities will enjoy the right to be selected as citizen judges. In the CRPD
Second Report and a response letter to the NHRC, the Judicial Yuan commented
that accessibility in courts would be improved. Nevertheless, when the NHRC
requested that the Judicial Yuan provide improvement plans to increase the
accessibility of the courtroom environment, the Judicial Yuan replied that because
court buildings varied in condition (i.e., some were new and some were old), the
relevant agencies would make improvements during routine repairs in accordance
with accessibility-related laws and regulations. No specific schedules have been
set. Given that accessibility at judicial locations and related assistance measures
are urgently in need of improvement, the NHRC recommends that the Judicial
Yuan follow the International Principles and Guidelines on Access to Justice for
Persons with Disabilities released by the United Nations in August 2020 to
comprehensively inspect its facilities and services.
Article 14: Liberty and security of person
69.
The NHRC maintains that the mandatory placement of and treatment measures
for persons with mental disorders stipulated in MHA does not conform to the
CRPD requirements. Additionally, the Concluding Observations of the ROC’s
Initial CRPD Report highlight that mandatory placement of and treatment
measures for persons with mental disorders infringes the human rights of persons
with disabilities. Nonetheless, the percentages of mandatory hospitalization and
community treatment cases approved between 2016 and 2019 remained high.
48