Opinion | ‘Beacon of freedom’ Taiwan needs to tackle its serious crime and livelihood issues
- The island’s favourable image in the West masks serious governance, societal and economic problems, which have led to the deteriorating crime situation
- Growth has started to slow as exports fall, which suggests poverty and inequality could worsen, and crimes such as extortion kidnappings could increase
Taiwan’s authorities recently revealed that 58 people had been rescued after being held and kept in shackles, following a police investigation into an extortion ring, with another three people having died. This was an apt reflection of developments on the island, where a spate of crimes has gone under the radar.
These include the killing of two police officers after pursuing a suspect in August, the murder of a Malaysian student last month, a mass shooting in an office building that killed four in July, an execution-style murder in a city hospital in August, and another mass shooting in Taipei last month that left four people wounded.
The fact the student’s death was the third murder of a female Malaysian student in Taiwan in three years sparked outrage in the Southeast Asian country.
This might all seem surprising as Taiwan generally appears to be safe and is seen as a haven for human rights. In a recent visit, the commissioner of the US Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, described Taiwan as “a beacon of freedom and democracy”.
