Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) yesterday said that nothing would be “nonnegotiable” between Taiwan and China once certain conditions are met.
Wang made the remarks at a news conference about a Taiwanese film company’s documentary on a father-son pair of Qing Dynasty artist-officials, Dong Bangda (董邦達) and Dong Gao (董誥).
Chinese culture is what connects the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, Wang said, calling for more cultural exchanges, creating more consensuses and increased collaboration.
Photo: Fang Pin-Chao Taipei Times
“When one day the political systems of the two sides are compatible, the GDP per capita comparable, the social and public values similar, and religious freedom guaranteed, the heart of the two sides of the Strait could be melded together and nothing would be nonnegotiable then,” the speaker said.
Meanwhile, asked if he would run in next year’s presidential election for the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) or instead run for legislative office in Changhua County as has been rumored, Wang called the rumor “nonsense,” but refused to give a definitive answer about the presidential race.
He said a conclusion “would surely be out before May 16,” the deadline for picking up a KMT presidential primary application.
Photo: Fang Pin-Chao, Taipei Times
In related news, the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) caucus stalled the legislature with 200 agenda-changing motions in a bid to derail a KMT plan related to draft bills for an oversight mechanism for cross-strait agreements.
The KMT reportedly aims to pass a reconsideration motion of referring the bills to the Internal Administration Committee for review.
If the reconsideration had been put to a floor vote yesterday as the KMT caucus had planned, it likely would have been passed, given the KMT’s legislative majority.
The party could then have had the committee’s convener, KMT Legislator Chang Ching-chung (張慶忠), preside over the review of the oversight bills.
Chang helped trigger the Sunflower movement in March last year by ramming the cross-strait service trade agreement through the committee and to the legislative floor in just 30 seconds.
The TSU launched its stalling campaign after cross-party negotiations broke down in the morning.
KMT deputy caucus whip Liao Kuo-tung (廖國棟) said the KMT conceded by allowing KMT Legislator Chiu Wen-yen (邱文彥) to chair the review instead of Chang.
However, TSU lawmakers said there should be a review without the KMT playing a presiding role in the committee.
They then proposed 200 motions to change the legislative agenda.
Each motion requires at least a few minutes to be put to a floor vote. When the floor meeting adjourned at about 4pm, only 61 of the motions had been voted upon.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
UKRAINE, NVIDIA: The US leader said the subject of Russia’s war had come up ‘very strongly,’ while Jenson Huang was hoping that the conversation was good Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and US President Donald Trump had differing takes following their meeting in Busan, South Korea, yesterday. Xi said that the two sides should complete follow-up work as soon as possible to deliver tangible results that would provide “peace of mind” to China, the US and the rest of the world, while Trump hailed the “great success” of the talks. The two discussed trade, including a deal to reduce tariffs slapped on China for its role in the fentanyl trade, as well as cooperation in ending the war in Ukraine, among other issues, but they did not mention
HOTEL HIRING: An official said that hoteliers could begin hiring migrant workers next year, but must adhere to a rule requiring a NT$2,000 salary hike for Taiwanese The government is to allow the hospitality industry to recruit mid-level migrant workers for housekeeping and three other lines of work after the Executive Yuan yesterday approved a proposal by the Ministry of Labor. A shortage of workers at hotels and accommodation facilities was discussed at a meeting of the legislature’s Transportation Committee. A 2023 survey conducted by the Tourism Administration found that Taiwan’s lodging industry was short of about 6,600 housekeeping and cleaning workers, the agency said in a report to the committee. The shortage of workers in the industry is being studied, the report said. Hotel and Lodging Division Deputy Director Cheng
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
RSS