TAIPEI (TVBS News) — President Tsai Ing-wen is facing mounting public pressure to tighten laws regarding the transfer of criminals to open prisons. The pressure comes after the Ministry of Justice's (MOJ) Agency of Corrections agreed to transfer Yi Pao-hung, a criminal convicted of killing a police officer and known as the son of a prominent Taiwanese actress, to a minimum-security facility.
President Tsai nodded in response to a reporter's inquiry during a briefing at the Criminal Investigation Bureau today. The reporter questioned the criticality of amending transfer rules for criminals in open prisons, although President Tsai did not directly comment on the incident.
Speaking at a press briefing, Taiwan's Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan highlighted that the Legislative Yuan has already conducted a public hearing and a Q&A session. He emphasized that the government is committed to promptly amending the law.
The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) proposed the amendment to the "Statute of Open Prisons," which was approved by the Executive Yuan in September 2022. The amendment, aimed at tightening the rules on transferring criminals to open prisons, is pending legislative approval.
Earlier today, MOJ Minister Tsai Ching-hsiang informed reporters that the amended law seeks to exclude criminals convicted of significant crimes, such as the murder of police officers, from serving their sentences in open prisons. Tsai stated, "Before the law is amended, I have urged the Agency of Corrections to thoroughly and strictly review each case."
In 2014, Yi Pao-hung murdered a police detective outside a nightclub in Taipei and was sentenced to 9 years in prison. Reports indicate that Yi was transferred to an open prison after serving only 2.5 years, sparking controversy and drawing criticism from various segments of society.