President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday again said he would like to sit down with the students leading the massive protest against the cross-strait service trade agreement because he does not understand the rationale behind their opposition to the pact, which he said is vital to Taiwan’s development.
Ma called a press conference at 6pm, ahead of an expected mass demonstration today against the pact, which the government signed with China in June last year and is pending ratification by the legislature.
Hundreds of students have occupied the legislative chamber since March 18 over concerns about negative impacts the pact might have on Taiwan, with an average of thousands of students, members of the public and civil groups joining sit-in protests within and outside the Legislative Yuan compound every day in support of the siege.
Photo: CNA
Ma yesterday offered the government’s latest response to the four demands that would be highlighted in today’s demonstration on Ketagalan Boulevard.
The government rejected the demand that the Executive Yuan withdraw the pact, as Ma said that revoking the pact would deeply harm the nation’s interests.
Ma said the government supports a mechanism to monitor cross-strait negotiations being brought into the legal system, but added that whether it is necessary for a specific bill to regulate cross-strait negotiations being enacted, as the students have demanded, was “open to discussion.”
Photo: CNA
The demand that a review of the cross-strait service trade agreement in the legislature be delayed until the specific bill is passed was “unnecessary,” Ma said, adding that the legislature can handle the two issues “in parallel.”
Ma said he has instructed the Executive Yuan to assess the possibility of holding a citizens’ constitutional conference, as the students have demanded, but he declined to give an estimated timeline for completing the assessment.
As for the possibility that Ma, who doubles as chairman of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), could loosen party discipline so that KMT lawmakers would not be coerced to toe the party line and instead make decisions of their own free will, Ma said that he “holds no sway over the KMT caucus’ decisions.”
“People think I can have anyone punished any time for breach of party discipline. In fact, it is the party caucus’ decision, not mine,” Ma told a press conference, which was rescheduled from 10:30am yesterday to 3pm, and then to 6pm.
Yesterday’s press conference was only the second time that Ma responded to the students’ demands in the past 12 days.
His first press conference on Sunday last week disappointed the students, with some protesters forcing their way into the Executive Yuan that night, followed by an occupation of the compound by thousands of students.
Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) then ordered National Police Agency (NPA) Director-General Wang Cho-chiun (王卓鈞) to forcibly evict the protesters from the Executive Yuan compound by dawn, resulting in scores of protesters being injured in what has been termed a bloody crackdown.
The crackdown had prompted calls for Jiang and Wang to resign, but Ma yesterday dismissed the calls, saying that was not necessary.
Ma reiterated that he would like to discuss with students whatever concerns they have about the cross-strait service trade agreement.
“I hope I can explain to the students the contents of the agreement in detail, but we have not been given a chance. I want to invite them for a talk and hope that they can tell me why they are opposed to the agreement,” Ma said.
Ma said he “failed utterly to see” why some people have criticized the cross-strait service trade agreement as being in China’s favor and that it would sell out the interests of Taiwan if it is ratified by the legislature.
‘CROWN JEWEL’: Washington ‘can delay and deter’ Chinese President Xi Jinping’s plans for Taiwan, but it is ‘a very delicate situation there,’ the secretary of state said US President Donald Trump is opposed to any change to Taiwan’s “status quo” by force or extortion and would maintain that policy, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Hugh Hewitt Show host on Wednesday. The US’ policy is to maintain Taiwan’s “status quo” and to oppose any changes in the situation by force or extortion, Rubio said. Hewitt asked Rubio about the significance of Trump earlier this month speaking with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) at the White House, a meeting that Hewitt described as a “big deal.” Asked whether the meeting was an indication of the
‘RELATIVELY STRONG LANGUAGE’: An expert said the state department has not softened its language on China and was ‘probably a little more Taiwan supportive’ China’s latest drills near Taiwan on Monday were “brazen and irresponsible threats,” a US Department of State spokesperson said on Tuesday, while reiterating Washington’s decades-long support of Taipei. “China cannot credibly claim to be a ‘force for stability in a turbulent world’ while issuing brazen and irresponsible threats toward Taiwan,” the unnamed spokesperson said in an e-mailed response to media queries. Washington’s enduring commitment to Taiwan will continue as it has for 45 years and the US “will continue to support Taiwan in the face of China’s military, economic, informational and diplomatic pressure campaign,” the e-mail said. “Alongside our international partners, we firmly
KAOHSIUNG CEREMONY: The contract chipmaker is planning to build 5 fabs in the southern city to gradually expand its 2-nanometer chip capacity Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, yesterday confirmed that it plans to hold a ceremony on March 31 to unveil a capacity expansion plan for its most advanced 2-nanometer chips in Kaohsiung, demonstrating its commitment to further investment at home. The ceremony is to be hosted by TSMC cochief operating officer Y.P. Chyn (秦永沛). It did not disclose whether Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and high-ranking government officials would attend the ceremony. More details are to be released next week, it said. The chipmaker’s latest move came after its announcement earlier this month of an additional US$100 billion
COUNTERING THE PLA: While the US should reinforce its relations with partners and allies, Taiwan must invest in strengthening its defenses as well, Phillip Davidson said If influence in the Indo-Pacific region is one of the US’ core interests, then Taiwan serves as a cornerstone of US economic and security influence in the region, former US Indo-Pacific Command commander admiral Phillip Davidson said on Thursday. “China’s ... strategy is to supplant the US leadership role in the international order ... and they’ve long said ... that they intend to do that by 2050,” Davidson told the National Review Institute’s Ideas Summit in Washington. Davidson said he had previously told US Senate hearings on China’s military activities and possible threats in the Indo-Pacific region that a Chinese invasion of
RSS