Those who think that handing the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) a two-thirds legislative majority (or a three-quarters majority if minor parties and independents come on board) is going to make the more aggressive members of the KMT more respectful of democratic processes and their underlying principles are in for a real shock.
This criticism may appear partisan, but it is not. Nor is it a gratuitous swipe at KMT leaders who have promised to treat the Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) legislative minority with respect, which would be a welcome development.
Only weeks after the legislative elections, a number of KMT figures have dropped hints that the dramatic increase in their legislative presence will be used to stake a claim on powers that belong to the executive -- and even the average voter.
The latest of these signals comes from KMT caucus whip Kuo Su-chun (
Most people refused to take part in the referendums this month, and there is a real risk that ennui and partisan considerations will kill the UN referendums when they are held. Hence the maneuvering over achieving a result on the UN bid.
But referendum topics are not of concern here. What is chilling is Kuo's idea that a legislative resolution would somehow override the result of a referendum: The "legislature represents the latest will of the people," as she put it, as if the legislature were the only manifestation of public will in this country.
Kuo did not seem to appreciate that referendums take place with constitutional authority and that the legislature would precipitate a constitutional crisis if it attempted to obstruct the process of ordinary people to petition for a referendum, regardless of its political party-sponsor.
The issue is protecting the Constitution from predators, regardless of their office. The Constitution is a charter that belongs to the citizenry, not cliques of politicians, though this simple fact is clearly not respected by a large number of legislators.
Of late, KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (
But Ma is running for the same office whose fundamental authority he has eroded by failing -- in his time as party chairman -- to keep legislators such as Kuo in check when they overstepped the lines between self, party and national interest.
If Ma supports the dismantling of presidential powers, the diminishing of the public's referendum powers and the creation of a parliamentary system in which a Cabinet is made up of legislators, then he should say so.
But he has not said so. The next big thing in Taiwanese politics -- should Ma win the election -- will therefore be watching him defend the viability of the presidency as his newly empowered legislative colleagues encroach upon the powers of the executive, and by extension the Constitution.
It is an untenable position, yet any retaliation will not come from the DPP, which is weak and poorly organized. Instead, the fallout will take the form of bickering within the KMT machine; ongoing instability in executive-legislative relations; and public servants defending their fragile professionalism as legislators bury their snouts deeper into the trough.
It is employment pass renewal season in Singapore, and the new regime is dominating the conversation at after-work cocktails on Fridays. From September, overseas employees on a work visa would need to fulfill the city-state’s new points-based system, and earn a minimum salary threshold to stay in their jobs. While this mirrors what happens in other countries, it risks turning foreign companies away, and could tarnish the nation’s image as a global business hub. The program was announced in 2022 in a bid to promote fair hiring practices. Points are awarded for how a candidate’s salary compares with local peers, along
China last month enacted legislation to punish —including with the death penalty — “die-hard Taiwanese independence separatists.” The country’s leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), need to be reminded about what the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has said and done in the past. They should think about whether those historical figures were also die-hard advocates of Taiwanese independence. The Taiwanese Communist Party was established in the Shanghai French Concession in April 1928, with a political charter that included the slogans “Long live the independence of the Taiwanese people” and “Establish a republic of Taiwan.” The CCP sent a representative, Peng
Japan and the Philippines on Monday signed a defense agreement that would facilitate joint drills between them. The pact was made “as both face an increasingly assertive China,” and is in line with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s “effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine military’s limited ability to defend its territorial interests in the South China Sea,” The Associated Press (AP) said. The pact also comes on the heels of comments by former US deputy national security adviser Matt Pottinger, who said at a forum on Tuesday last week that China’s recent aggression toward the Philippines in
The Ministry of National Defense on Tuesday announced that the military would hold its annual Han Kuang exercises from July 22 to 26. Military officers said the exercises would feature unscripted war games, and a decentralized command and control structure. This year’s exercises underline the recent reforms in Taiwan’s military as it transitions from a top-down command structure to one where autonomy is pushed down to the front lines to improve decisionmaking and adaptability. Militaries around the world have been observing and studying Russia’s war in Ukraine. They have seen that the Ukrainian military has been much quicker to adapt to