Child’s Death Rallies Support for Death Penalty in Taiwan
by Stuart Dingle on Friday, December 21, 2012
From Yahoo Taiwan:
Ten Thousand People Oppose “Abolishing Capital Punishment’
After a boy’s throat was cut, ten thousand people on Facebook gave support to opposing the ‘anti-capital punishment movement’
After slitting the throat and murdering a 10-year-old boy in Tainan, the killer even went on to say, ‘You can even kill 1 or 2 people in Taiwan these days and not be sentenced to death”, the twisted way of thinking triggering criticism throughout society. The family of a two-year-old boy who was tortured to death in Sindian last year offered their condolences, the boy’s aunt having a few days ago specially traveled to Tainan to comfort the murdered child’s father, initiated a petition on Facebook that within a week saw over ten thousand people give their support, and in the afternoon went to the Ministry of Justice to call for the enforcement of the death penalty.
Boy whose throat was slit receives donations, but father Fang [the boy's father] asks that donations be left for those more in need. After the Tainan schoolboy surnamed Fang had his throat cut, people from all walks of life donated money to help the Fang family; but today, as he stood by his child’s funeral hall, the father today implored people to stop donating, so they can give their compassion to even more needy people. The schoolboy surnamed Fang had his throat slit dying tragically while at an arcade in Tainan’s south district, and when his father rushed to the Tainan Municipal Funeral Parlor, he only had 200 NTD on him.
After the Fang family’s financial circumstances were made public, people from all walks of life donated money continuously, with even many people only asking asking for an account number for donations. The elementary school that schoolboy Fang attended announced on the 3rd a dedicated bank account to collect donations from people to give to the Fang family, with the school receiving on their behalf. The father this morning held a press conference at the Tainan Municipal Funeral Parlor beside his son’s funeral hall and expressed his appreciation for all the assistance people have given while asking everyone to no longer donate to his family but to give their compassion to those in greater need.
61 death-row inmates have yet to be executed, protested by the victims’ families.
The number of criminals who have been sentenced to death in Taiwan has now reached 61, but since the the March 4th last year, already 1 year and 9 months have passed without an execution, leading the victims’ families to be dissatisfied and organize an online protest, as well as going to the Ministry of Justice this morning, demanding that the criminals awaiting execution be dealt with in accordance with the law. They believe it is the failure to execute those who have been given death sentences that led to this boy having his throat cut case happening in Tainan. The last time the Ministry of Justice carried out an execution was March 4th of last year.
Including Guan Zhong-yan, Zhong De-shu, and the murderers of five major homicide cases, the total number of convicts awaiting execution had numbered 40, but since then the number of people have continuously grown. On August 16th of this year, when the ‘Cartoon Killer’ Huang Fu-kang was sentenced, he became the 60th inmate awaiting execution. August 30th, taxi driver Cao Tian-shou who killed a female student in Keelong was also sentenced to death, becaming the 61st inmate awaiting execution. In one year and nine months the number of people awaiting execution has risen by 21, yet they continue to be imprisoned only, evoking popular discontent. The Ministry of Justice indicated that the law will definitely be carried out, but there is no timetable.
