Suggests that abolishing death penalty and a moritorium on executions can be discussed separately

Taiwan leader Ma Ying-jeou said yesterday that the contentious issue of whether Taiwan should abolish capital punishment needs to be openly debated to reach a reasonable solution in a rational manner.

"The controversy may not be resolved any time soon, but if a discussion is not started, we may be mired in emotional arguments forever, which would not be conducive to healthy social development," Ma said while meeting with a group of members of the Prosecutors Association of Taiwan.

The meeting came just days after "Justice Minister" Wang Ching-feng resigned because of an outcry over her refusal to authorize the executions of any of the 44 convicts on death row and her vow to push for the abolition of the death penalty.

In his view, Ma said the question of whether the death penalty should be scrapped can be addressed separately from the issue of whether a moratorium should be imposed on the execution of inmates on death row.

"The two issues are not completely correlated and can be dealt with separately," Ma said.

He indicated that some reform initiatives were already being acted upon, including the elimination of any crime exclusively punishable by the death penalty; the declining frequency of judges giving death sentences; and stricter restrictions on parole for those given life sentences.

On the other hand, education, debate and publicity on matters related to the abolition of the death penalty have been seriously inadequate, Ma said.

"The Ministry of Justice" and other law enforcement authorities should devote more effort to those areas to create more room for rational debate, Ma urged.

The United Nations has passed a resolution calling for a moratorium on the implementation of the death penalty and, while it is not binding, it points to a trend worthy of attention, Ma said.

Ma also took advantage of the setting to recognize Wang's contributions to judicial reform during her nearly two years in office.

Among others, Ma said, Wang's approval of computer monitors in prosecutorial hearings of suspects was a commendable reform that he said could enhance the accuracy of transcriptions of testimony and reduce human error or negligence in the investigative process.

On judicial reform issues, Ma said the public's concerns may not necessarily coincide with those of prosecutors and lawyers. For instance, ordinary people generally do not understand key points at issue in proposed bills on speedy prosecutions and the oversight of judges.

"What concerns them most are how to establish an exit mechanism for unfit judges or prosecutors and how to upgrade the quality and efficiency of criminal investigations," Ma said.

On wiretapping, Ma said he has repeatedly asked intelligence and law enforcement authorities to uphold the principles of the rule of law.

"Any wiretapping operation should meet two requirements - it must be necessary and proceed according to the law," Ma explained, adding that simply being legal was not enough to justify all wiretaps.

Prosecutors Association President Chu Nan thanked Ma for agreeing to meet with them and listen to their opinions, and for nominating "Deputy Justice Minister" Huang Shih-ming, who currently serves as acting "justice minister", to be the top prosecutor.

The nomination is now pending legislative confirmation.

China Daily/CNA

(HK Edition 03/16/2010 page4)