D.
E.
Continuing from the preceding issue, Point 53 states, “Prisoners alleging
torture may submit complaints to the prison or its supervisory authority.
Between 2015 and 2019, the Corrections Departments have received 1,945
complaints of this kind…” Accordingly, we can see that a large number of
complaints have been filed; however, what is the ratio of verified to
submitted cases of alleged torture, as calculated after investigation? What is
the actual condition of the practice of torture in prisons? As information
about the true status of torture and the disciplinary action and improvements
to be adopted by the Corrections Departments are omitted in the report, the
actual condition of the human rights of prisoners is thus inconclusive.
Regarding labor rights protections in Article 7 of the ICESCR, the Taiwan
government provides no statements on whether the remuneration for the
daily work of prisoners meets the basic living requirements.
In the publication of the Third Report, the Executive Yuan claims that the
legalization of same-sex marriage and adultery decriminalization mark Taiwan’s
significant progress in human rights protection in recent years. Although Taiwan is
the first Asian country to recognize same-sex marriage, non-governmental
organizations in Taiwan have struggled for more than 30 years to reach this point. In
Judicial Yuan Interpretation No. 748 of 2017, the Justices of the Constitutional Court
ruled that the related regulations in the Civil Code are unconstitutional and represent
“inadequacy” due to their failure to allow two people of the same sex to establish an
intimate and exclusive permanent relationship for the purpose of common living.
The Judicial Yuan decided that this violated the right to freedom and equality of
marriage prescribed in the Constitution. As for the decriminalization of adultery, in
Judicial Yuan Interpretation No. 791 of 2020, the Justices of the Constitutional Court
ruled that criminal punishment for those committing adultery as defined under
Article 239 of the Criminal Code was unconstitutional. This was ruled because
women in adultery cases are much more often prosecuted than men through these
suits, thus causing indirect gender discrimination. Article 239 of the Criminal Code
was eventually abolished by the Judicial Yuan, to realize substantial gender equality,
some 80 years after it was last amended in 1934.
Reviewing issues of human rights protection in Taiwan over time, relief from
the injustice will not be achieved until the rights of the people involved have been
long affected, as judicial rights are “passive” and “retroactive” by nature. Relief is
only achieved after a long judicial procedure and a huge investment of labor, time,
and expenses by many parties. Therefore, it is a major issue for the government at
all levels to design mechanisms for the active, proactive, and efficient prevention, as
well early warning indicators, of potential human rights violations.
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