by Xin Yage

The tragic death of a young soldier, who died from excessively harsh punishment, sparked a heated debate in the island over the military and its internal rules. Now new regulations have been adopted to ensure justice for soldiers.

Taipei (AsiaNews) - Eight months after the tragic death of 24-year old conscript Hung Chung-chiu (洪 仲 丘) on 4 July 2013 after two days of harsh punishment in the last week of his national service, Taiwanese authorities appear to be taking concrete steps to respond to widespread and sometimes violent protests by ordinary Taiwanese against hazing in the military.

The matter became again front-page news last week when a civilian court in Taoyuan (rather than a military tribunal) convicted those responsible for the young conscript's death.

For thirteen of the eighteen officers and non-commissioned officers investigated, the sentence varies from three to eight months, whilst the other five were acquitted.

Many legal experts and professionals note that civilian courts tend to impose lighter sentences.

Chung Hung-chiu's family held a press conference (pictured) where it said that it would appeal and thus continue the battle for justice after the young man's death.

However, public pressure has already forced the government to introduce several changes.

First, cases that have come to light over the past 20 years are being reviewed and the review period was extended compared to what was originally planned (five years) to allow for greater transparency to look more carefully at cases already known and those still unknown.

Secondly, jurisdiction was moved from the military justice system to the civilian justice system. If a crime is committed in peacetime, it now falls under the individual rights protection of the Criminal Code.

• taiwan
• violence
• military
• hazing
• trial
• death
• chung
• hung-chiu