Ep 152 | Hsinyi Lin Fights to Abolish the Death Penalty in Taiwan Part 1

Oct 13, 2021

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A note from Talking Taiwan host Felicia Lin:

My guest on this episode of Talking Taiwan is Hsinyi Lin, the Executive Director of the Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty. She spoke with me about the movement to abolish the death penalty in Taiwan.

2000 was an exciting year for Taiwan, it was the first time that there was a transition in power from the Kuomintang, and the first time that a Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate, Chen Shui-bian was elected. That same year President Chen Shui-bian announced that the death penalty would be gradually be abolished. However, in September of 2000 there was an execution.

This is part one of a two-part interview. In next week’s episode, I will get in to a deeper discussion with Hsinyi about the public opinion on the death penalty in Taiwan, why the death penalty has not yet been abolished and the problems with the current death penalty procedure in Taiwan.

Here’s a little preview of what we talked about in this podcast episode:

How Hsinyi got involved in the movement to abolish the death penalty in Taiwan
The announcement in 2000 by President Chen Shui-bian (the first Democratic Progressive Party president of Taiwan) that the death penalty would be abolished
How Lu Cheng (盧正) a case that was believed to be innocent was executed in September of 2000 after the Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty asked Control Yuan was to review the case
This first case proved innocent by the judicial system in Taiwan was the Hsichih Trio (蘇案)
Exonerated cases in Taiwan with the year the case started and the year the case was exonerated: Hsichih Trio (蘇案): Su Chieh-ho (蘇建和), Liu Bing-lang (劉秉郎), Chuang Lin-hsun (莊林勳, 1991-2012)

Hsu Tzu-chiang (徐自強, 1995-2016), Cheng Hsing-tse (鄭性澤, 2002-2017), Hsieh Chih-hung (謝志宏, 2000,-2020)

Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty’s (TAEDP) work on cases believed to be innocent
How Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty was formed on December 9, 2003
The urgency of the case of Tzu Hsu-chiang (徐自強) who was exonerated in 2016
How Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty advocates and deals with all death row inmate cases
The NGOs that Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty works with