Kaohsiung Prison riot

The Kaohsiung Prison riot was a hostage situation that occurred at Kaohsiung Prison in Taiwan starting 11 February 2015. Six inmates, whose ringleader was a member of Bamboo Union,[3] seized weapons, including assault rifles, and took the warden hostage for a 14-hour high-profile stand-off, which caught media attention nationwide. The group of inmates eventually committed mass suicide.[4] The inmates protested that the former President of the Republic of China Chen Shui-bian, who jailed for 20 years for money laundering, was granted medical parole due to his status as a political prisoner[5][6] while other prisoners were denied. This is the first ever prison riot with officials held hostage in the history of Taiwan.[7][8]

Kaohsiung Prison riot
TimeFirst two guards taken: 11 February 2015 (2015-02-11), 4:30 p.m. (UTC+8)[1]
Head warden released: 12 February 2015 (2015-02-12), 5:00 a.m. (UTC+8)[2]
LocationKaohsiung, Taiwan

Aftermath

A subsequent investigation found that the head prison warden was unaware of the hostage crisis for 30 minutes after it began.[9] On 26 February, the Ministry of Justice announced that 23 prison officials had been reprimanded for their handling of the incident.[10] The head warden was demoted and given a demerit. Demerits were also served to two of his top aides, and to the head of the Agency of Corrections.[11]

By August 2016, the head warden, deputy warden and head guard were no longer in their respective positions and had been impeached by the Control Yuan.[12]

Taiwanese media compared[13] this riot to the 1988 Seoul prison jailbreak in which Ji Kang-hun escaped to protest the seven-year sentence of Chun Kyeong-hwan, the brother of South Korean president Chun Doo-hwan, who was convicted of embezzlement and tax evasion.[14] Ji thought it unfair that he received a longer sentence for stealing a smaller amount of money. The Korean movie The Holiday starring Lee Sung-jae was based on this incident.

References
  1. "Taiwan prison siege ends in suicides of hostage-takers". BBC News. 12 February 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  2. Chen, Ja-fo; Lee, Bear; Chen, Jay (12 February 2015). "Kaohsiung prison hostage crisis ends in suicide of six inmates". Central News Agency. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  3. "Inmates take jail staff hostage in Taiwan". Sky News Australia. 12 February 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  4. Armstrong, Paul (13 February 2015). "Inmates free hostages, shoot themselves dead after Taiwan prison siege". CNN.com. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  5. "Taiwan prison siege ends, six armed inmates kill themselves". Channel NewsAsia. 12 February 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  6. Chung, Lawrence (11 February 2015). "Six prisoners commit suicide after shoot-out in Taiwan prison seige". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  7. "Don't blame MOJ officials too harshly". The China Post. 19 February 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  8. Chen, Chao-fu; Lee, Bear (12 February 2015). "Kaohsiung Prison hostage incident ends with hijackers committing suicide". Central News Agency. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  9. Chung, Lawrence (27 February 2015). "Taiwan prison warden 'lied about heroic offer to be hostage' in deadly siege". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  10. Pan, Jason (28 February 2015). "Prison warden demoted after MOJ probe". Taipei Times. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  11. Tsai, Pei-chi; Chang, Maubo (26 February 2015). "Prison warden, officials disciplined over hostage crisis". Central News Agency. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  12. Liu, Claudia; Low, Y. F. (16 August 2016). "Former Kaohsiung Prison officials impeached over hostage crisis". Central News Agency. Retrieved 16 August 2016.
  13. "高雄監獄挾持案 3大巧合似韓片《逃獄風雲》". China Times (in Chinese). 12 February 2015. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  14. Jameson, Sam (6 September 1988). "Chun Brother Convicted in South Korea : He Gets 7 Years for Fraud, Embezzlement While a High Official". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 28 February 2015.

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