Taiwan court: Sending joss paper can be criminal intimidation

Taipei, Taiwan – Taiwanese law distinguishes between traditional customs and criminal intimidation, as highlighted by a recent court case involving a man sent to prison for mailing a threatening letter containing 冥紙 (joss paper) to a local council speaker. The court sentenced the man to four months imprisonment, which can be commuted to a fine.

The letter was addressed to Hsieh Tien-lin, speaker of the Changhua County Council. The sender, identified as Mr. Ke, falsely used another man's name. The letter accused the speaker of damaging his car and demanded a resolution, while the inclusion of joss paper, traditionally burned for the deceased, was intended to evoke fear of death.

This case prompts a discussion on the legal boundaries of intimidation in Taiwan. While joss paper is a traditional element in ancestral worship and funeral rites, its use in threatening contexts has become more common among debt collectors and those issuing threats. The article notes that while simply seeing or burning joss paper in a traditional setting is unlikely to be deemed a threat, its deliberate delivery to someone's home or office, especially when combined with menacing language, can be interpreted as intimidation.

The court's decision reflects a modern understanding of symbols and their potential to instill fear. The article also touches upon curses, suggesting that threats relying on supernatural or unverifiable forces may not meet the threshold for criminal intimidation, potentially falling under lesser offenses related to public order. The core of criminal intimidation, as defined by Article 305 of the Criminal Code, involves threats of harm to life, body, freedom, reputation, or property that cause actual fear and endanger safety.