Ingenious Bending of the Law in Taiwan

This picture of a plain looking table in a night market may seem on the boring side but, in fact, it you are looking a little bit of Taiwan ingenuity when it comes to the law.

On this unattended table can be found DVDs of films like Terminator Salvation and all the very latest movies in the theaters. So you've figured out that this is a table full of pirated videos. The only thing is they are just sitting there unattended.

Taiwanese are smart and always find ways to get around laws. In this case, were the table attended, the police would have someone to arrest. No attendee therefore no arrest. The DVDs are just sitting there. However, customers can't just take them. They are expected to make a 'donation' in the box in the middle. And the box just stays there unattended. Or so it seems...

In fact, the table and the box are monitored by someone but in a crowded night market, it's hard to know just who. Most likely gangsters working in the area. So, if you choose to help yourself to a copy, don't forget to make your donation.

So, as you can see the secret attendants are protected and the customers help themselves to the DVDs, self-service style. It's an ingenious way to keep the law-breakers out of harms way. And, it seems, the customers seem not to be at fault as 'unwitting' buyers of such illegal movie copies.

Ignorance (of the Law) is Bliss

I went out for hotpot the other night with some friends and was planning to have a few beers. The trouble is, you see, I wanted to have a few beers with the meal and then ride the scooter home. I know, I know, drinking and driving don't mix, blah, blah, blah. But I could drink under the legal limit and still drive, right? That is, of course, still legal.

However, what exactly is the legal limit in Taiwan? Most Taiwanese I asked just spouted off what the commercials against drunk driving say, "Jiou hou bu kai che," "After alcohol, don't drive." They basically were saying to me that there is a zero tolerance towards any driving after drinking (some countries do have zero tolerance laws). One local guy at work even went as far as saying if they stopped me and detected alcohol on the breath, one small wiff and you'd be busted.

[BTW, the drunk driving checks in Taipei amount to police road blocks, usually at night, in very typical spots around bridges or very heavily traveled roads. They are very predictable and often the police cars leave their lights on, warning vehicles in advance of the road blocks. The scientific drunk test amounts to an officer stopping a vehicle and asking for the driver to blow in his face so he can take a wiff. That's it! Hope he likes the smell of the stinky tofu I just ate! Some officers have also started to use flashlights to check pupil dilation. So much for robust checking....]

This brings me to a side point: Taiwanese are mostly pretty ignorant of their laws. In fact, Taiwanese just have impressions of their laws or know hear-say about the laws but do not know the fine letter of their laws. If you want to test this, ask someone about a law that you know a lot about back home and see if there is a Taiwanese equivalent. You'll understand what I mean.

So, Taiwanese, for the most part, live in ignorance of their laws. They go about their lives with a feeling for what is right or wrong for society but largely are unaware at the legal structures in place to settle legal matters. When I think about how people back home take no time to spout off their God-given rights and threaten to sue at the drop of a hat, you can immediately notice a difference in Taiwan which is much less of a litigation society. This is a kind of bliss.

Perhaps Taiwan is headed in the litigation society direction, though, with all the legal wrangling in the courts these days. It is important to note that previous presidents were technocrats with degrees in things like Agriculture Economics (Lee Deng-Hui). But now, we have had a lawyer by profession (President Chen who has landed himself in some legal troubles recently) and someone who studied Law (current President Ma). As in the West, lawyers and law-types seem to be rising here in Taiwan politics.

I digress. Back to the drunk driving law. Here is something more concrete and fairly up to date from the Taipei Times:

"Under the former regulations, the legal limit for a driver's blood-alcohol level was 0.25mg per liter. If a driver's blood-alcohol level exceeded 0.25mg per liter, he or she faced a fine of between NT$15,000 (US$460) and NT$60,000 -- depending on the type of vehicle driven and the blood alcohol content measured.

If a driver's blood alcohol content exceeded 0.55mg per liter, he or she would be charged with the inability to drive safely, which carried either a maximum one-year jail sentence or a maximum fine of NT$30,000.

The new regulations punish serious drunk drivers with both imprisonment and a fine, stipulating that if a driver's blood alcohol level exceeds 0.55mg per liter, he or she could face up to one-year in prison as well as a fine of up to NT$150,000.

As a result, should an offender receive a six-month sentence (the maximum length of sentence that can be commuted to a fine), and commutes the term to a fine, the offender would face paying a fine of up to NT$690,000."

Taipei Times

There are, in fact, 2 different standards for testing: BAC (Blood Alcohol Content) and mg/liter.

The definitive source is the TBAF or Taiwan Beverage Alcohol Forum a group sponsored by the major alcohol companies in Taiwan:

The current penalty listing below:

Alcohol Strength	Automobile	Payment
Alcohol breathalyzer test over 0.25mg/litre to 0.4mg/litre or BAC at 0.05% to 0.08%	Motorbike	15000
	Sedan	19500
	Long & heavy vehicle	22500
	The driver convicted with DUI twice in one year and one dose not have a driver license.	60000
Alcohol breathalyzer test over 0.4mg/litre to 0.55mg/litre or BAC at 0.08% to 0.11%	Motorbike	30000
	Sedan	34500
	Long & heavy vehicle	37500
	The driver convicted with DUI twice in one year and one dose not have a driver license.	60000
Alcohol breathalyzer test over 0.55mg/litre and above or BAC 0.11% and above
	Motorbike Sedan	45000 49500
	Long & heavy vehicle	52500
	The driver convicted with DUI twice in one year and one dose not have a driver license. The drunk driver would be prosecuted if caused any car accident	60000
Information source: Taipei City Police Department Traffic Division.

There you have it but if you blinked or fell asleep you may have missed an important distinction about Taiwan's drunk driving law. Countries like the US and some parts of Canada have BAC legal tolerance up to 0.08 but Taiwan's is 0.05 which is quite a bit lower.

According to the Wikipedia, that means for a 82kg man, anything more that 2 cans of beer would put you over 0.05 (subtract approximately .01% for every 40 minutes after drinking), theoretically speaking. [I am not responsible for any faulty math or reading of the charts]

So, scooter and car drivers beware! Only 1 can of beer for me before I hit the road... just to be sure. Ignorance of Taiwan's drunk driving law is not bliss. It could be quite costly.

TBAF faq page

TBAF drunk driving statistics Seems like mid-Taiwan has, by far, the most incidents. That is, if all police forces are equally diligent in enforcing and reporting.

The Cellphone Law

It's official. Taiwan is more progressive than the West. What in you say. Well, basically, no cellphones while driving.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0NEW/is_2001_August_31/ai_77752620

Although this may be old news as the law passed in 2001, I think it merits being pointed out that this kind of ban on using hand-held cellphones when driving by and large does not exist in places like my very own Canada.

If you are interested to know where this kind of law applies, look no further. Looking at this chart of places that ban cellphones in hand while driving there are some remarkable stand outs:

http://www.cellular-news.com/car_bans/

The law in Taiwan, although on the books, is virtually unenforced (like a lot of laws here). The result is that most people get away with a call here and there. Even scooter drivers can be seen rising with one hand holding their phone or having it stuffed up into their helmets for a hands-free experience.

It seems that most motorists are not always convinced to change their ways (although something like the scooter helmet law can be seen as fairly successful, at least in big cities).

Paris, Lindsay and now... Shino

Singer Shino 林曉培 was busted for manslaughter of an off-duty nurse. She was driving drunk in the early morning and hit the nurse.

Some reports have suggested that the nurse was breaking the law by crossing the road at the time so Shino is not so much at fault.

I totally disagree. It seems like a lot of the stars and models here in Taiwan drink and drive. Hopefully something will come out of this case and they will start to think soberly about what they are doing...

In recent times, we have had Paris Hilton going to jail for her drunk driving and Lindsay Lohan crashing her car and the cops finding cocaine in it. Shino's arrest has some interesting parallels that can be made with these celebrities misbehaving. Let's hope that they don't get off easy by being made an example to the public because of their higher profiles...

Are Taxi Drivers WMDs?

A common thing you'll hear in Taiwan is that a large percentage of taxi drivers are reformed criminals. Is there really any truth to this? Can a guy who just got off Green Island (known notoriously for its prison) really become a taxi driver? What percentage are really reformed criminals?

Well it's difficult to say... According to the newspapers:

"Existing laws stipulate that people with criminal records of rape, homicide, robbery or kidnapping are not allowed to apply for taxi licenses."

I think there are probably few reformed criminals in fact. However, this does not rule out the budding criminals! Many taxi drivers have a history of mental instability and violent behavior. It is well known that these taxi groups are also infiltrated by gangsters. Just pick a fight or damage a driver's car and watch all his friends show up in no time with crowbars or machetes. This fact added to the often crazy driving skills is a potent powder keg of a mixture.

I personally have had no trouble with drivers in Taipei. They are quite chatty if you strike up a conversation. Politics is an ify topic though. Also, don't assume that most drivers can't speak English. I've ridden in quite a few cabs with quite fluent drivers.

I remember a story a friend once told me about taking a cab. She was a local woman. She hailed a cab and got in. She told the driver her destination. Not too long after, he complained that he was really hungry as he hadn't eaten. Being a passive woman, she said that he could stop to get something. Once he had something, he said something along the lines of "What am I going to do? I can't drive and eat at the same time. How about you drive?" The girl, not thinking twice, drove the cab to her destination and then remarkably paid the driver! Only in Taiwan I say!