ABSTRACT
Many Taiwanese victims used to feel alienated from the criminal justice system. There are various reasons behind this phenomenon. First of all, their opinions were sometimes ignored or even disregarded in the criminal procedure. In deciding whether to prosecute an offence or to make an appeal, prosecutors did not necessarily pay attention to what victims thought. Even if they did not like a prosecutor’s decision, victims did not have an effective channel to challenge it. In sentencing a defendant, a judge did not even ask for the victims’ opinions. It was very often that victims did not know or understand the progress of the case or the result of the procedure after they reported the offence to the authorities. No officials would keep them informed of the procedure.
