Justice 11 Years Overdue!! Statement of Acquittal for Su Chien-ho, Liu Bing-lang, and Chuang Lin-xun

After more than two years and over thirty court hearings, the Taiwan High Court's criminal division finally delivered its verdict at 11:00 AM today (January 13, 2003), acquitting Su Chien-ho, Liu Bing-lang, and Chuang Lin-xun in the retrial case that has drawn widespread public attention. Upon learning of the High Court's verdict, the Judicial Reform Foundation, the Humanistic Education Foundation, and other organizations that have spent years working to rescue the defendants hereby issue a three-point statement as follows:

First, the civil society organizations that have been involved in the rescue efforts since the case was finalized in the third instance in March 1995 are deeply gratified and encouraged by today's acquittal of Su Chien-ho and the other two by the High Court. The three presiding judges of the High Court demonstrated courage in shouldering their responsibilities, upholding the principles of "presumption of innocence" and "beyond a reasonable doubt." They meticulously clarified the numerous doubts left by previous judgments—such as "the confessions of the defendants Su Chien-ho and others were not given voluntarily" and "there was no corroborating evidence other than the defendants' confessions"—and restored their innocence. This also proves that the judiciary now possesses the capacity to break free from past shackles of "prejudice, reliance on confessions, and superficiality," moving toward a new era of "impartial, objective, and independent adjudication."

Second, we earnestly appeal to all sectors of society not to stoke antagonistic sentiments between Su Chien-ho and the other two and the victims' families. The grief of the victims' families could not be undone when the incident occurred 11 years ago, and we express our profound regret and sincere condolences in this regard. Nevertheless, given that the real perpetrator, Wang Wen-hsiao, was executed in 1992, and this retrial judgment has further proven that Su Chien-ho and the other two are also innocent victims of the judicial system, both parties are "victims." We urge that no further antagonism be fostered between them, so as to prevent unnecessary misunderstandings and harm.

Third, we specifically call upon the prosecutors of the Taiwan High Prosecutors Office to forgo an appeal. The Prosecutor-General of the Supreme Prosecutors Office previously filed extraordinary appeals on three separate occasions, indicating that the Prosecutor-General also recognized the injustice in this case. Now that the retrial judgment has thoroughly and exhaustively investigated all evidence, prosecutors should not file another appeal, so as to avoid wasting judicial resources and creating the unfavorable public perception of a "split personality" within the prosecutorial system.

Finally, the civil society rescue organizations earnestly request all sectors of society to face squarely the tribulations suffered by Su Chien-ho, the other two, and their families over the past 11 years. We hope that the judicial repercussions and social attention generated by this acquittal in the retrial will become a powerful driving force for the judiciary to march toward a new era—ensuring that justice, delayed by 11 years, was not awaited in vain, and that the youth sacrificed by Su Chien-ho and the other two for the sake of the judiciary was not wasted!