Analysis: More Enforcement Needed for Digital-Based Sexual Violence

TaiwanPlus News

A new report finds that 1 in 15 people has been targeted by image-based sexual violence in Taiwan. TaiwanPlus speaks to artist Ting-Ting Cheng to learn more about the impact of such crimes and why she believes additional law enforcement is needed.

Transcript

00:00Advocates are calling for stronger sexual privacy laws as cases of image-based sexual

00:05violence rise in Taiwan.

00:07A recent report from the Modern Women's Foundation cites government data as showing 1 in 15 people

00:13have been affected by this in recent years.

00:15They had intimate images taken without their consent, through coercion or through deepfakes.

00:21In 2024, Taiwanese police looked into just over 3,200 suspects in such cases.

00:27Only 187 were convicted, about 6%.

00:31The foundation is now calling for stricter laws punishing those who possess or buy these

00:35images.

00:38For more on the impact of image and digital-based sexual violence, I spoke to Qingqing Zheng,

00:43an artist who recently held an exhibit in Taipei focusing on the topic.

00:47So as you're making this exhibition, I know you're trying to educate viewers, but also

00:52for you, what did you learn from your research?

00:56What I was quite shocked about, it was also sometimes, again, I think this is based on

01:00every precinct, every city, every country, it's not generalization, but sometimes how

01:05police reacting to certain things like that.

01:08Like I heard stories on how police were, some of them of course, were dismissive about cases

01:13like that.

01:14They feel like, well, there's nothing you can do.

01:16And also I think the other thing is how, I'm going to use the word outdated, in a way our

01:22laws aren't, like, especially cyber crimes, like deep faith, things like that, it's really

01:27not much of a, you know, organized regulation about this.

01:33And I think this, we really need to catch up with the situation.

01:37And we need to, you know, evaluate the harm, because, you know, in Taiwan we have this case,

01:42it's like, oh, I just use your faith to make deep fake porn.

01:46So I didn't rape you, I didn't expose your nudity, and, you know, how do we find crimes

01:51like that?

01:52And also, like, I think there's also very subtleties, like, oh, are you profiting?

01:58So as if only you're profiting, there will be a crime from it, you know, but I think it's

02:04very complicated, you know, there's a lot of harms are done.

02:07So I feel like, first I really think as a society, we need to be less judgmental, just as a whole,

02:14you know, and also I think the laws really need to catch up with the situation.

02:18What kind of change do you hope your exhibition can bring?

02:22Sometimes I think I can be a bit pessimistic, I admit, like, I do, I think in the most ideal

02:28world, I really hope I can, this work can reach to people who didn't know this area that

02:34well, who didn't think commenting on female or male celebrities' appearance and judging

02:43them, you know, doubting their, you know, if it's plastic surgery or not, or slush shaming

02:50people.

02:51I think to reach the really, the one behind the person running the website and like change

02:58his or her, well, mostly his, let's be honest, like this behavior, I think it's really too

03:04utopian.

03:04That's not going to happen.

03:05But I really hope I can reach to people who think they are making, oh, it doesn't matter

03:10if I just click on this link to watch it, it doesn't matter, I just comment on this comment,

03:14you know, that's, they're celebrities, they should be used to attack.

03:17I think these people, I'm hoping if the works can reach to them, to realize that, you know,

03:24just sometimes have a second doubt before you do a certain action, and also just don't judge

03:29people who did.

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