ABSTRACT

This chapter examines what is known about crime in contemporary Taiwan and has sought to contextualize criminology as an academic discipline in Taiwan. Geographically located in the Western Pacific, just 100 miles from the south-eastern coast of the People’s Republic of China, the island of Taiwan comprises most of the land area of the nation known officially as the Republic of China – known at times as Nationalist China, Free China, the Republic of China on Taiwan – but most often referred to nowadays simply as Taiwan. In terms of political economy, Chiang’s Leninist-style regime produced division on ethnic, cultural, and language issues, with marked cleavages of social and economic status, as well as a sharp polarization of political sentiment. Governments across the world have several purposes for use of administrative criminal statistics: making policy; managing performance; and, crucially, communicating with the public. A detailed socio-historical study of the genesis, development, and consolidation of criminologyas-discipline in Taiwan is, as awaited.