Taiwan amended three legal guidelines governing sexual harassment in a particular session of the legislature, after a wave of #MeToo accusations hit the island in June.

The modifications authorized on Monday embody increased penalties and longer intervals for victims to come back ahead and report an incident to authorities. The modifications are an try to deal with the problems raised by the current accusations of sexual violence in Taiwan.

Taiwan has three legal guidelines governing sexual harassment: one for the office, one for colleges and one which covers spheres outdoors these two domains.

Beneath the office legislation, employers can now be fined as much as 1 million New Taiwan Dollars (USD 31,680) in the event that they fail to deal with sexual harassment complaints. Employers are additionally required to report circumstances to the native division of their labour division.

The training legislation, amended final Friday, explicitly makes it unlawful for educators to have a romantic relationship with college students underneath the age of 18. Additional, principals and lecturers who fail to report back to the Ministry of Schooling a sexual harassment allegation inside 24 hours may be fined.

Legislators additionally prolonged the penalty for sexual harassment to 3 years in jail underneath the Sexual Harassment Prevention Act, and raised the heaviest high-quality to 600,000 New Taiwan dollars (USD 19,000).

Taiwan’s #MeToo motion was reignited in Could when a younger girl who labored for the ruling Democratic Progressive Celebration accused movie director Hsueh Chao-hui of groping her and making undesirable sexual advances.

Chen Chien-jou, who recognized herself publicly whereas making the accusation, wrote that she didn’t simply wish to let it go, quoting a line from a Taiwanese TV present known as Wavemakers. Extra accusations of sexual harassment adopted from different Taiwanese girls towards politicians, earlier than spreading to different areas together with leisure, music and colleges.

The brand new amendments additionally plug in sure loopholes, reminiscent of requiring small companies and firms with fewer than 30 individuals however greater than 10 to arrange mechanisms for reporting sexual harassment. Small companies have been beforehand exempt from such a requirement.

Greater than 90 per cent of companies in Taiwan have 30 individuals or fewer, stated Chen Wan-hui, a legislator within the Taiwan Folks’s Celebration.