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Ministry clarifies
rules on videotaping police on duty
Staff writer, with CNA
Members of the public can record or videotape policemen performing their duties
in public places to safeguard their own interests, and such action will not be
regarded as encroaching on the privacy of the police officers, if it is done in
a reasonable way, the Ministry of Justice said.
The ministry issued the statement following recent heated discussions on whether
people should be permitted to record or videotape policemen on duty, and whether
such action should be considered obstruction of official police duty.
The controversy stemmed from an incident in September last year, when two
college students were stopped by police in Greater Kaohsiung and given tickets
for driving illegally modified scooters.
Throughout the incident, the students were filming the officers, and when they
ignored the officers¡¦ warning that they had to obtain the officers¡¦ consent
before filming, they were brought to a police station and served notices for
obstructing the officers from performing their duty.
The incident caused a public outcry, which prompted Greater Kaohsiung Mayor Chen
Chu (³¯µâ) to issue a statement calling on the police to respect the rights of the
public.
The ministry, in its latest statement, said that people reporting a crime to
judicial authorities or who are being questioned cannot record or videotape the
procedure, based on the principles of investigation confidentiality and
presumption of innocence, and to protect the privacy of defendants.
However, cases of appeals, reporting or administrative investigations are
divided into two classes: ¡§open¡¨ and ¡§closed-door¡¨ events.
In an ¡§open¡¨ event, members of the public, based on the principle of
safeguarding their personal interests, can make a recording or videotape, as
long as they do not take a close-up shot of the police officer involved.
As for ¡§closed-door¡¨ events, when someone wants to speak to the police in
private, law enforcement authorities can, based on safety concerns, restrict or
prohibit recording or videotaping.
The ministry said that whether such recording violates the law will be
determined by law enforcement officials on a case-by-case basis.
Anyone threatening police officers on duty will face charges of obstructing the
police.
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