First-batch Taiwanese prisoners in China will back to serve sentences in Taiwan before Ching Ming Festival
- Publication Date ：
- Last updated：2018-12-28
- View count：3558
:::
After the implementation of the "Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act" on July 23, 2012, the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) had actively discussed with mainland China and, after more than eight months of repeated talks, both sides have finally overcome the institutional differences and deliberated on the implementation details concerning the complicated transfer processes. Finally, the preparation work completed. The first-batch three Taiwanese inmates who had served many years in China Fujian Putian prison were transferred back to Taiwan by the MOJ prosecutor and investigators of Investigation Bureau, MOJ dispatched to China. Taipei Distrcit Prosecutors Office sent them to Taipei Prison to serve the remaining sentences according to the order of sentence conversion by Taipei District Court. Family members of the three prisoners can go to the prison to visit them or talk to them via remote video set up in the prison near their residences without having to suffer the torture of cross-strait running around. The three prisoners expressed their deep regret for their drug smuggling and showed full gratitude for the accomplishment of their return to Taiwan to serve their sentences created by the Cross-Strait Joint Crime-Fighting and Judicial Mutual Assistance Agreement and "Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act".
According to the statistics made by the China Ministry of Justice, about 1,500 Taiwanese currently serve sentences in China. MOJ will, according to the preceding model established through great efforts by both sides, continues to assist the said prisons or their families to apply for the return to Taiwan to serve their sentences. For related information please refer to the website of MOJ.
So far, MOJ has concluded the transnational transfer of sentenced persons agreement and treaty with Germany and Panama. It will continue to work with Hong Kong, Macao and other countries and regions to negotiate the signing of similar documents, so that the inmates serving their sentences in a foreign country can go back to their countries to serve the uncompleted sentences in order to undergo humane and effective correction treatment while implementing judicial decisions to achieve social justice.