Weapons and self-defence

Hi all,

 I have a question or two that I've been wondering about for some time now. I've seen the self-defence equipment available in the stores (like Dollars, Carrefour, the night market, etc.) and this got me wondering about the legality of carrying such weapons on a day-to-day basis.

 While buying a counterfeit money-detecting light pen at Dollars, I asked the clerk a few questions about the extending batons and other stuff. Unfortunately, most of her reply was too quick for me to understand. 

 One time my boss and I were talking about this sort of thing, and he told me that if I were stopped by the police, they might search the motorcycle but would not conduct a "pat-down". When I asked him why, he told me it's because of the relative rarity of guns. 

 Anyways, could someone tell me more about the legal aspects of self-defence and the restrictions on carrying items (like the batons, spray and hand-held shockers). Thanks!

First of all, I am drunk right now so take anything I say with a block of salt. If you are worried about legality, I don’t think you will ever run into a problem with the Taiwanese authorities carrying aroung any sketchy self-defense weapon unless you kill someone. The bigger problem is that if you think a cobra, pepper spray, a stun gun or a knife or anything else will protect you from harm, you are sadly mistaken. Be very careful what you you carry. If you go into a situation thinking self-defense (=violence) you are more likely to have violence used against you. The best defense is to be a wuss and run and use what you have (your hands and arms) to protect yourself. The “I am safe because I am armed” or the self-defense mentality breeds an environment of violence that is likely to get you hurt. The best defense is to avoid confrontation rather than try to persevere during one. Everyone wants to feel safe, but carrying a weapon is not the answer. Sorry if you disagree with me or dislike this response, but like I said, I am pretty drunk right now.

Gotta agree with the previous post.

Although having a weapon is theoretically advantageous, it carries with it a lot of other problems. Among them

  • It will escalate the fight. If you pull out something that can do grievous harm to the other person, you have raised the stakes of your fight that much higher.

  • If the police get involved, even if you were not the one to start the fight you will appear to the courts to be more violent prone if you’re the kind to be carrying weapons in the first place.

  • To always have an effective weapon on you and quickly available is incredibly difficult. You may have only a fraction of a second to defend yourself, and by then it may be too late.

  • You have to know how to use the weapon enough for it to be a true advantage, and you have to know how to keep it from getting into the hands of your opponent. That takes training and skill.

It sucks, but for the most part it’s better to avoid the fight in the first place, even if you have to run. Again, I agree with chainsmoker that it’s not worth it.

Chainsmoker and Spanky,

 Thanks for your replies. In my home country I did some martial arts training, so I'm familiar with the issues you raised and agree with you as well. However, I am more interested in the legal aspects. Thanks anyways for your replies, and again, both are good advice that should be followed.