Forum | Human Dignity and Social Reintegration: Symposium on Prison Labor Remuneration

I. Purpose of the Event

During the 2015 Kaohsiung Prison hostage incident, the statement issued by the inmates pointed out: "Working for a whole month yields only two hundred NT dollars, which is not even enough to buy a set of underwear and requires relying on family assistance. We have lost all human dignity, and yet we are still dragging our families down. The only paths left are suicide and fighting it out."

Nine years have now passed. Behind the thick and towering concrete walls, have the fruits of labor of inmates in prisons and detention centers received equal treatment that respects human dignity?

In 2023, an administrative litigation judgment by the Taiwan Hualien District Court explicitly pointed out that the regulations concerning prison labor remuneration were unconstitutional and unlawful. However, the Ministry of Justice and the Agency of Corrections have refused to admit their mistakes or effect change.

This year, the Constitutional Court will hold oral arguments on the prison labor remuneration case. At this critical juncture, this symposium aims to serve as a catalyst for exchanges between academia and civil society practitioners, gathering diverse opinions to facilitate discussion and promote subsequent reforms.

II. Event Guidelines

1. Date: June 21, 2024 (Friday)

2. Time: 14:00～17:00

3. Venue: Left Bank Books (No. 3-1, Chenjiang St., Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City 100)

4. Organizers:
Judicial Reform Committee, Taiwan Bar Association
Human Rights Committee, Taiwan Bar Association
Human Rights Committee, Taipei Bar Association
Judicial Reform Foundation

5. Capacity: 30 in-person attendees, with simultaneous online streaming available

6. Agenda:

Time	Schedule	Speaker	Remarks
13:30～14:00	Registration
14:00～14:10	Opening Remarks	Lo Shih-hsiang (Executive Director, Taiwan Association for Innocence; Convenor of the Prison Working Group, Judicial Reform Foundation)
14:10～14:50	Discussion Topic 1: Whether There is a Right under Public Law to Claim a Reasonable Amount of Labor Remuneration	Hu Po-yen (Full Professor, School of Law and Department of Law, Soochow University)
14:50～15:30	Discussion Topic 2: Human Dignity under the Prison Labor Remuneration System	Chiu Yu-fan (Full-time Associate Professor, Institute of Technology Law, National Chiao Tung University)
15:30～16:10	Discussion Topic 3: The Right to Social Reintegration under the Prison Labor Remuneration System	Lu Ying-chieh (Professor, Department of Law, National Chung Cheng University)
16:10～16:30	Q&A Session
16:30～16:40	General Discussion
16:40～16:50	Closing Remarks	Lo Shih-hsiang (Executive Director, Taiwan Association for Innocence; Convenor of the Prison Working Group, Judicial Reform Foundation)
16:50～17:00	Adjournment

Click to Register