Mother of Hong Kong woman killed in Taiwan pleads for change to law to ensure justice for her daughter
- The woman’s 20-year-old daughter was killed while on holiday in Taiwan with her boyfriend last February
- Taiwanese police want to speak to the boyfriend, Chan Tong-kai, in connection with the death, but there is no legal mechanism for him to be sent to Taiwan
The mother of a Hong Kong woman found dead in Taiwan last year hopes proposed changes to the law will mean justice for her daughter.
“The whole ordeal has left a hole in my heart and I can’t sleep well at night,” she told a press conference in Hong Kong on Tuesday.
Her 20-year-old daughter went on holiday to Taiwan last February with her boyfriend, Chan Tong-kai, 19, but never returned.
When Chan came back to Hong Kong alone, his girlfriend’s worried parents became suspicious and Taiwan police were alerted.
Her decomposed body was found in bushes near a subway station on the outskirts of Taipei in March, and an autopsy showed she was three months’ pregnant when she died.
Chan is now wanted in Taiwan in connection with the young woman’s death, but he remains in Hong Kong. Taiwanese authorities say they have asked for him to be sent there, but received no response from Hong Kong.
The case has exposed a loophole in the current system because the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance and the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Ordinance do not apply to Taiwan.
The Hong Kong government said it hoped to change the law to cover all jurisdictions worldwide, making it possible for the government to adopt a one-off, case-by-case approach to hand over fugitives or offer legal assistance to any jurisdiction Hong Kong has not already entered into an agreement with.
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The dead woman’s mother, who declined to be named, spoke publicly about the case for the first time on Tuesday and pleaded that legislators change the law soon.
“This is the only way justice can be served and until then, my daughter cannot rest in peace,” she said.
“At home, she was a good daughter. In school, she was a good student,” she said. “What did she do to deserve this? Our family never imagined that such a horrible thing could happen to such a nice girl.”
She said she had been under enormous pressure and needed counselling since her daughter’s death.
After he returned to Hong Kong, Chan was arrested and charged with theft and money laundering for allegedly having stolen goods, including the dead woman’s bank card, camera, mobile phone and about NT$20,000 (about HK$5,097 or US$649) and HK$19,200 (US$2,446) in cash.
Last August, the Kwun Tong court ordered the case transferred to the Eastern Court for committal to the High Court.
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In December, Taiwanese authorities issued an arrest warrant for Chan. The Shilin District Prosecutor’s Office asked Taiwan’s justice ministry to seek help from the Hong Kong government via the island’s Mainland Affairs Council to have Chan sent to Taiwan to stand trial.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, it asked the Hong Kong government for mutual legal assistance at least three times last year but received no response.
