Taiwan

As a #MeToo wave sweeps Taiwan, the nation has amended three laws governing sexual harassment in a special session of the legislature.

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The changes which were approved on Monday, include tougher penalties and also grant victims a longer time to come forward and report the incidents. These changes, as per the news agency AP, are an attempt to address the issues raised by recent accusations of sexual violence on the island.

Taiwan's sexual harassment laws

The island nation has three laws governing sexual harassment, one each for workplaces, schools, and a third one that covers spheres outside the other two domains.

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Sexual harassment at workplace

Amending the first one, lawmakers have made it so that employers can be fined up to a million New Taiwan Dollars (around $31,680) for failure to address sexual harassment complaints in workplaces.

Also read | Netflix show 'Wave Makers' creates waves in Taiwan, triggers flood of #MeToo complaints

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Employers are also required to report cases to the local division of their labour department. 

Additionally, plugging loopholes, lawmakers have mandated that small businesses with less than 30 but more than 10 employees must set up mechanisms for reporting sexual harassment. Earlier, small businesses were exempt from the requirement and given that more than 90 per cent of businesses in the nation have 30 people or fewer, this was a significant omission.

Sexual harassment in schools

The law for educational institutions was amended on Friday and it explicitly makes romantic relationships between educators and students under the age of 18 years illegal.

Further, principals and teachers who fail to report sexual harassment to the Ministry of Education within 24 hours can be fined under the amended law.

Overall, the penalty for sexual harassment under Taiwan's Sexual Harassment Prevention Act has been raised to three years in jail, which can come with the heaviest fine of 600,000 New Taiwan dollars ($19,000).

Also read | Study shows why sexual assault victims hesitate to come forward immediately

The nation's #MeToo movement was reignited in May. As per AP, back then, Chen Chien-jou, a young woman working for the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, had accused film director Hsueh Chao-hui of groping her and making unwanted sexual advances.

In the first two weeks of June, the island nation saw more than 90 people come forward, accusing individuals across Taiwan. 

Spreading throughout Taiwanese society, these complaints, as per a BBC report, targeted doctors, professors, sporting umpires, YouTubers, and high-profile men like Tiananmen protest leader Wang Dan, and exiled poet Bei Ling.