By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

TAIPEI, Taiwan – Capital punishment has stirred up a debate in Taiwan, leading to the resignation of the country’s justice minister and a letter from Amnesty International to the country’s president.

Taiwan has not carried out executions in the past four years and just last week, Taiwan’s Justice Minister Wang Ching-feng affirmed that no executions would take place during her term.

However, her comment drew heavy criticism from the Taiwanese public, which resulted in her speedy resignation.

Like many of its neighbors, Taiwan has not abolished the capital punishment system and reserves death penalty for serious crimes, e.g., aggravated murder, kidnapping and robbery.

Furthermore, opinions polls show that there is a widespread public approval of capital punishment and that sentiment has not diminished over the years.  In an interview conducted by United Daily News last week, 74% of the interviewees in Taiwan said they support capital punishment. 

Conversely, Taipei Bar Association’s Human Protection Committee is working to end capital punishment. 

Hsueh Chin-feng who heads the Committee said, “We have a long way to go before Taiwan formally abolishes the death penalty.  Wang’s resignation has dealt a further blow to the cause of ending capital punishment. . . .”

Amnesty International also sent a letter to Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou urging him to end death penalty and set an example for other Asian countries to follow.

The letter said, “We [Amnesty International] look to Taiwan as a leader in the region on progress toward abolition. . . The lives of the 44 inmates on death row must not be comprised . . . Taiwan should . . . abolish capital punishment in row or practice.”

One of the death row inmates, Su Chien-ho, was initially sentenced to death back in 1995.  Su spent most of his adult life on death row for murder.  He went through series of trials, and another retrial has been ordered by Taiwan’s Supreme Court.

Rights activists argue that Su’s situation exemplifies a flawed death row case.  Other activists have expressed concern over the risk of executing the innocent.

In another public opinion poll, only 35% of Taiwan’s public said that they view life imprisonment as an acceptable replacement of capital punishment.

For more information, please see:

Taipei Times – Capital punishment debate stirs up Taiwan – 20 March 2010

Taiwan News – Death penalty row risks Taiwan’s image – 19 March 2010

Taiwan Today – Amnesty International urges Ma to end death penalty – 19 March 2010

By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

NORTH WAZIRISTAN, Pakistan – The US government continued its drone-striking campaign against the Taliban over the past week.  This time the government killed at least two alleged pro-Taliban fighters in the tumultuous northwestern region of Pakistan.  The two attacks, which included direct hits in North Waziristan, occurred within an hour of each other on Wednesday according to Pakistani officials.  The first attack included a series of four missile strikes aimed at a departing vehicle in Miran Shah, an important center in North Waziristan.  This initial four-missile strike also razed a residence which was close to the targeted vehicle.  The second attack consisted of a three-missile strike in Madakhel, another town approximately 40 km from Miran Shah.

These particular missile strikes occurred after a recent US drone strike killed at least eleven peoples all suspected to be agents acting in allegiance with the Taliban.  Previous attack, along with the latest couple of drone missile strikes, demonstrates a pattern of concentrating the targeted killing of pro-Taliban fighters in North Waziristan.

By M.E. Dodge
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – A group of artists who resisted violent attempts to evict them, will receive compensation for giving up their claims to property and for their hardship.  A spokesperson for the group stated that they were awarded 6 million yuan ($0.88 million) for their protest. The amount is to be divided among dozens of artists living and working in the district.

 A worker uses a hammer on an old building to be demolished in China. Photograph courtesy of Yahoo! World News.

The artists involved were from art districts, Zheng Yang and the 008 area. The group’s representative, Zhang Jun, said that they were able to form an agreement after negotiations with local officials. Compensation came after an incident involving about 100 men who wore white masks and were armed with iron rods. They swarmed the two art districts, beating several as they marched through the regions.

Zhang stated that it was unclear who would pay the compensation, because the ties between the real estate developer and the government of the Chaoyang District of Beijing were murky. He said the negotiations went smoothly and took place with district officials, though police officers acted as intermediaries. In a public announcement, Zhang indicated that, “If they had been so rational and polite three months ago, everything would simply be fine.  We just want to be treated as humans.” 

The incident in Zheng Yang was not, however, an isolated event. Another group of artists in the Zhengyang district have also been compensated, although the amount has yet to be confirmed, according to spokeswoman, Xiao Ge.  Xiao is the curator of a project supporting the artists. For three months, the artists have taken turns standing guard to prevent developers from coming in to take over and destroy their studios.  Local authorities and land developers had said the artists must move out to make way for redevelopment. Water and electricity have reportedly already been cut off.

According to Xiao, “This is the first time that Chinese artists have united to protect their rights. It’s a small victory.” An even bigger triumph is the detention of 18 people last month, who were suspected of assaulting the artists, state media reported.

In the aftermath of negotiations, leaders from both Zhengyang and 008 will establish a “rights protection fund” to assist people in similar situations, such as the teachers and children in nearby migrant schools resisting forced eviction.

For more information, please see:

 Yahoo! World News – Artists in China compensated after daring protest – 16 March 2010

Global Times – Artists receive compensation for attack – 16 March 2010

New York Times –  China Compensates Evicted Artists – 15 March 2010

By Michael E. Sanchez
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

By Hyo-Jin Paik
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – Instead of releasing those who were arrested without charge during the March 2008 protests in Tibet, the Chinese government is stepping up security ahead of the protests’ anniversary in the Lhasa area.

The 2008 protests was the major protest held by Tibetans against the Chinese in twenty years.  Over a span of four days, hundreds of monks peacefully protested in and around Lhasa against China’s intrusive controls over religious, cultural, and economic activities.

However, Tibetan public began protesting against the police who were preventing the monks from leaving their compounds, which lead to Tibetan rioters burning Chinese shops and government buildings.

Since then, the Chinese have kept a close eye on Tibet.  China executed two Tibetans for the involvement with the 2008 riots last year.

Special police forces have been stationed across the Lhasa region, and the police are checking identification papers and searching homes.  Those who have been to Lhasa, Tibet’s capital, and other Tibetan cities in recent days have reported that police and paramilitary forces with automatic weapons have lined the streets.

Sophie Richardson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said, “Further repression will breed precisely the kind of instability the Chinese government fears.”

“Addressing underlying grievances and allowing Tibetans to enjoy basic rights of expression, assembly and due process is the only way to ensure the ‘harmony’ Beijing so craves,” added Richardson.

Both reports conducted by Human Rights Watch and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) show that Chinese government subjected Tibetans to arbitrary arrests and that little information has been provided as to the whereabouts of the detainees.

UNHCHR said the ethnic violence in China is the result of China’s “discrimination and failure to protect minorities.”

Lastly, Richardson commented, “National security concerns do not exempt Chinese government from its obligation to respect fundamental rights and freedoms.”

For more information, please see:

BBC – Heavy security in Tibet ahead of protests’ anniversary – 13 March 2010

Human Rights Watch – China: Accountability Overdue in Tibet Protests – 12 March 2010

NYT – China Increases Security in Tibet to Prevent Protests – 11 March 2010