The parents of Yang Chengxun, a student who was the victim of the New Taipei City school neck-cutting case, last month criticized the "Juvenile Incident Handling Act" as an "evil law." The Executive Yuan will pass a draft amendment to the "Juvenile Incident Handling Law" today, adding a litigation participation system for victims of major cases, and raising the juvenile parole threshold for major criminal cases to one-half. Yang Chengxun's father issued a statement in the evening, affirming that the government has taken the first step in reform, but he advocated that the sentencing of major crimes of more than five years should be reviewed and the expungement of previous cases should be more stringent. He called on the Legislative Yuan to hold a public hearing to establish and improve the judicial system.
The neck-slitting case on campus in New Taipei City three years ago aroused great public concern. The Executive Yuan Council today passed the Judicial Yuan Council's draft amendment to the Judicial Affairs Law, adding a system for the participation of victims in major cases, raising the juvenile parole threshold for major criminal cases to one-half, and strengthening investigation procedures for "juvenile accomplices."
In this regard, Yang Chengxun's father issued a statement tonight stating that after more than five months of discussion, the Executive Yuan finally passed the amendment draft, affirming that the government is willing to face up to the problem and take the first step of reform. Although there is still a gap between expectations, it is happy to see progress in the amendment of the law.
He put forward four propositions, including: first, supporting the right of victims to participate in litigation, affirming that victims of major crimes and their families have the opportunity to express their opinions in court, and no longer only the voice of the perpetrators; second, supporting raising the parole threshold for major crimes to more than one-half of the sentence, and including the opinions of victims and survivors in parole review.
Third, for major crimes such as homicide and sexual assault, the expungement of previous records should be more stringent, and for cases sentenced to more than five years in prison, the current sentencing and penalty execution should be re-examined, and the harm suffered by the victim cannot be ignored; fourth, we call for rational revision of the law, and hope that the Judicial Yuan and the Ministry of Justice will take the initiative to communicate with family representatives, and ask legislators to hold a public hearing, invite experts, scholars, practitioners and family members to discuss, and establish a long-term system that takes into account protection and fairness.
New Taipei City Councilor Shi Yiyou and council candidate Chen Junyan, who have been accompanying their families for a long time, also responded. Shi Yiyou said that by accompanying Father Yang all the way, he hopes that the voices of the victims and their families will be truly heard by the judiciary; Chen Junyan pointed out that judicial reform cannot be achieved overnight, but every system progress requires someone to persist.
Shi Yiyou and Chen Junyan jointly emphasized that the adoption of the draft by the Political Yuan is only the starting point for reform. After the draft is sent to the Legislative Yuan, issues such as liability for major crimes, expungement of previous cases, and protection of the rights and interests of victims must still be fully discussed through public hearings. While juvenile justice retains opportunities for correction, it must not ignore the pain of victims and will continue to speak out for the rights of victims.
