No Matter How Vulnerable, Everyone Deserves a Better Justice System

The Complaint Center is the JRF's frontline department for engaging with the public. Through answering grievance hotlines and conducting direct interviews, we personally connect with everyone who encounters the justice system, seeking to understand the predicaments they face.

This March, having grown up in Malaysia, I began working at the JRF. Since then, one particular case has continuously replayed in my mind...

Jenny is a migrant worker from the Philippines. Once possessing a happy family, she suffered domestic abuse from her former husband in recent years, which ultimately led to their divorce. Since that time, she has never seen her child again; her ex-husband, who obtained custody, completely refuses to let her visit. Broken in family and isolated without support, she made her way to Taiwan to work as a live-in domestic caregiver, looking after an elderly grandmother. She devoted herself entirely to the work, not daring to make the slightest misstep, because she could not imagine how she would survive if she lost this job.

Last February, the grandmother's son—her employer—actually laid his claws upon her! Following the incident, she was terrified and in agony. However, constrained by the dual barriers of unfamiliarity with the language and environment, coupled with her vulnerable plight of being deeply afraid of losing her job, she did not dare to leave her employer and endured the ordeal in silence without reporting it to the police right away. Recognizing Jenny's fear of resistance, the perpetrator continued to harass and sexually assault her. On the verge of a breakdown, Jenny finally sought help from a friend to report the crime to the police, stepping into Taiwan's judicial procedures.

However, the prosecutor handling this sexual assault case dismissed the charges against the perpetrator on the grounds that Jenny did not actively resist, cry out for help, or report the crime immediately, concluding that Jenny did not look like a typical sexual assault victim. In this individual case, the prosecutor nakedly displayed rape myths and prejudices against a specific group, inflicting an indelible, secondary injury upon her.

The JRF received a grievance from a shelter hoping to file a complaint against this prosecutor. To clarify the facts of the case, I visited the shelter where Jenny resided twice. During our first meeting, shy, helpless, and with limited proficiency in English, Jenny recounted her experience through a friend's interpretation in a Philippine dialect. When I met her the second time, I brought news that the JRF had resolved to accept her complaint and initiate a prosecutor evaluation proceeding. During this conversation, free from interpretation or superfluous words, I could feel that she was expressing from the depths of her heart a profound sense of gratitude toward us.

Jenny's case has left a deep mark on my heart, because she and I share the same status—that of a migrant worker. I have been fortunate enough not to face language barriers, but I cannot imagine how much anxiety and terror Jenny must have felt during police investigations and prosecutorial interrogations, given that she knew no language at all and lived in constant fear of losing her job and being deported. Placed in an unfamiliar environment, confronting a judicial system lacking in interpretation resources and utterly hostile to outsiders, she was ruthlessly crushed by the machinery of the state.

This case compelled me to repeatedly ponder: what is the underlying meaning of a "fair trial" and a "friendly justice system"? When discrimination and prejudice prevail, when rights that ought to be protected are denied and evidence that ought to be investigated is ignored, how can the people expect such a justice system to be reasonable and impartial? When prosecutors and judges don their judicial robes, what they hold in their hands are the lives—and even the very survival—of individuals, families, and entire communities of migrant workers. Prosecutors and judges holding such immense power must exercise it with caution and responsibility. No matter how vulnerable a person may be, they deserve a better justice system. We must reflect: can Taiwan, which prides itself on legal progress, treat friends from foreign lands in a friendly and impartial manner?

Since its establishment in 2011, driven by passionate staff and supported by countless volunteers and pro bono lawyers, the JRF Complaint Center has proudly walked through 6 years. We have never forgotten the entrustment and expectations bestowed upon us by every single complainant. As the frontline of judicial reform, we have handled, rescued, and reported thousands of cases. We remain forever passionate about these cases, resolute and fearless in the face of power. Through case assistance and judicial monitoring one after another, we strive to build a friendlier, more egalitarian judicial environment so that fairness and justice can be realized in the hearts of even the most vulnerable citizens.

If you identify with our philosophy and values, we earnestly invite you to make a donation to support the JRF, allowing the Complaint Center to carry your support forward and continue striving for Taiwan's judicial environment!