Physical violence is simply the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the legislature's problems. However, people have grown so numb to the daily parade of misconduct by our lawmakers that few even bother to raise an eyebrow about it. Fundamental to an effective reform of the legislature is curtailing lawmakers' blanket immunity for all remarks made on the legislative floor. Lawmakers do have a legitimate and undeniable need to freely express their views and openly advocate the interests of their constituents in the legislative process. Therefore, we propose that Taiwan follows countries such as the US by limiting the immunity only to speech related to their legislative activities.
Words can be a hundred times more lethal than fists.
Too many will do and say anything, however unscrupulous, outrageous or just plain wrong, for a chance to get their faces on the evening TV news. Also important for effective reform is limiting the blanket immunity from all arrests that lawmakers enjoy while the legislature is in session. Currently, as many as 35 lawmakers are defendants in ongoing criminal trials. However, because of their immunity, many of them refuse to comply with court summonses. Again, many countries including the UK and the US give lawmakers immunity from arrests for civil offenses, but not criminal offenses.