TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The limit on compensation for the deaths of victims of political repression will double to NT$12 million (US$434,000), the Cabinet decided Thursday (Jan. 13).

The proposal is the latest measure designed to benefit victims of persecution by the Kuomintang following its takeover of Taiwan in 1945, during the period widely known as the White Terror, when government opponents were executed, disappeared, or imprisoned on accusations of sympathy for communism or for Taiwan independence.

Under previous legislation, the maximum limit on payments to the relatives of victims who were killed stood at NT$6 million. For former prisoners, the limit will be raised from NT$5.9 million to NT$11.39 million, CNA reported.

The Transitional Justice Commission (TJC) said that victims or their relatives who have received compensation in the past would be allowed to apply to make up the difference between the previous and new amounts.

Victims of illegal confiscation will, for the first time, also be able to file claims for redress, reports said. If it is not possible for the property to be returned, the victims can apply for financial compensation.

The new measures cover the period from Aug. 15, 1945, to Nov. 6, 1992. The number of compensation cases is expected to increase from 13,000 to 14,000 for a total amount of NT$27.7 billion, according to a TJC spokesperson.