Calls to Reform Police Force After Officer Convicted of Misconduct
The conviction of a New Taipei police officer for beating a man he thought was a suspect has renewed calls for police reform. It is the latest development in a string of high-profile incidents involving excessive force or torture by the country's police.
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00:00A silent protest against police brutality.
00:03Two years ago, this man, Mr. Huang, was mistaken for a wanted suspect.
00:07He fought back against the officer trying to arrest him and ended up with these injuries.
00:12Both Huang and the officer went to court over the fight.
00:15The New Taipei District Court found Huang innocent and sentenced the officer to five
00:19months for misconduct.
00:20Huang is here, still angry about what he's been through.
00:24The victim who was beaten so badly was even harmed by the police who violated the law.
00:32This is the biggest mistake of my life.
00:36The local police force says it's staying out of the case.
00:39The police's position is to respect the judicial decision.
00:42This is the decision of the perpetrator.
00:45The district court is not asking for it.
00:47But advocates for criminal justice reform say the police shouldn't be allowed to do nothing.
00:51The police are not well-trained.
00:53The police have clear regulations for their actions.
00:57What regulations should they use in what situation?
00:59Or should they correct the lack of regulations?
01:02We think there's a problem with this.
01:04In the past few months alone, police have been accused of torturing a teenage suspect
01:07during interrogation and of beating to death a man they thought was a scooter thief.
01:12And such cases stretch back years.
01:15Last summer, police chased down and injured a Central Taiwan teen they thought might be
01:19an undocumented migrant worker.
01:21And the police shooting of a Vietnamese migrant worker in 2017 has even been turned into an
01:26award-winning documentary.
01:28NGOs say Mr. Huang's case is yet another example of police brutality.
01:32And they say it's time for changes so that excessive force and torture by Taiwan's police
01:36force are stamped out.
01:39James Lin and John Ventriest for Taiwan Plus.