The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) yesterday issued an ultimatum demanding that President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) apologize to the public about the controversial cross-strait service trade agreement and renegotiate the deal.
“If it were not for Ma’s grave mistakes in his handling of the agreement, the students would not be here,” DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) told an international press conference, referring to the hundreds of protesters — mostly students — occupying the legislative chamber since Tuesday evening.
“The ball is now in Ma’s court. A solution to the ongoing mass protest is still possible if he is willing to apologize, send the deal back for substantive deliberation and renegotiate it with China,” Su said, warning the Ma administration against using police force to remove the students.
Photo: Liu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) has always resorted to smear campaigns to discredit the opposition and hide its true motives, Su said.
Since the occupation of the legislative chamber began, the KMT and several media outlets have branded the students “rioters” and accused them of “lawless behavior,” he said.
Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) and KMT caucus whip Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) yesterday accused “certain political parties” of being behind the student protest.
The DPP has nothing to do with the protest, Su said, adding that the students “had no choice but to stage it” because Ma had refused to listen to the public.
Su blasted KMT claims that the DPP had violated the consensus and tried to undermine the ratification of the deal.
Nothing could be further from the truth, he said, as the DPP had submitted a counterproposal and convened a joint committee meeting to review the pact.
“The KMT could have attended the meeting and taken advantage of its majority during the review process, but it refused to do so,” he said.
Pledging his full support to the students, Su said the DPP has begun mobilizing people across the country for a mass rally today in and around the Legislative Yuan compound.
With the DPP and the Taiwan Solidarity Union both mobilizing support, the crowd of protesters could swell to more than 15,000, he said.
At press time, the number of protesters outside had surpassed 10,000, police estimates show.
In a prepared statement, the DPP condemned the KMT for disregarding a previous consensus on the trade agreement, overriding legislative proceedings and undermining Taiwanese democracy.
The party said it could not take the pact lightly because it would impact thousands of industries and millions of jobs in the nation.
The DPP said it would support and protect the students, who have set a deadline of noon today for Ma to meet their demands, as long as the protest persists.
Meanwhile, the Formosan Association for Public Affairs (FAPA) is urging US President Barack Obama and the US Congress to express their “strong concern” to Taipei about the government’s efforts to force the cross-strait service trade agreement through the legislature.
“The present heavy-handed approach is harmful to the country’s democracy,” a statement issued by the Washington-based Taiwanese-American organization said.
“The KMT government and the Legislative Yuan urgently need to have an orderly clause-by-clause process to review the agreement,” it said. “As this trade agreement is an international legal instrument, it should be treated as such and receive formal approval by the legislature.”
“FAPA will raise this issue with its contacts in the US Congress and the US Government and urge both to convey their strong concerns to the Taiwan authorities about these undemocratic procedures,” it said.
Additional reporting by William Lowther
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College