Independent lawmaker Sisy Chen (
Both lawmakers said a shared desire to prevent partisan rows from paralyzing the Legislative Yuan prompted them to side with the PFP caucus, which will now be able to win an extra seat in the Procedure Committee as a result of its increased size.
"Oftentimes, partisan feuding starts in the Procedure Committee that sets the legislature's agenda," Chen told reporters.
"Its 36 seats would be equally divided between the ruling and opposition camps if I didn't join either side," she said.
By aligning herself with the PFP, Chen said she can better push for policy initiatives she cares about and help enhance overall legislative efficiency.
One initiative she wants to push this legislative session is a proposal to deprive the Department of Health of the power to adjust national health insurance fees.
She said she will also keep a close eye on the Taiwan High Speed Railway project, which she thinks has been sponging off of the state coffers.
Chen insists she will remain an "independent."
"I will not take part in internal PFP activities nor assume any position in its 2004 presidential campaign," she said.
Echoing Chen's stance, Wu said he hoped his joining the PFP caucus can give the pan-blue camp an upper hand in the Procedure Committee and the legislature as a whole.
"Without affiliation to any legislative caucus, I acted like a guerrilla in the last two sessions," he said. "By working with the PFP, I hope to better serve my constituents on Kinmen."
The New Party lawmaker said he was also motivated by a desire to help bolster the joint effort by the KMT and the PFP to unseat President Chen Shui-bian (
The KMT and PFP now hold 112 seats in the 223-member legisl-ature, whose size has dropped by two seats following the death of PFP Legislator Hsieh Chun-hui (謝鈞惠) and the resignation of DPP Legislator Chou Po-lun (周伯倫), who recently began serving a prison sentence for corruption.
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
Taiwan and Thailand have signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral investment and trade, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN) said on Friday. The agreement on “Promotion and Protection of Investments” was signed by Representative to Thailand Chang Chun-fu (張俊福) and Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei executive director Narong Boonsatheanwong on Thursday, the OTN said in a news release. Thailand has become the fifth trading partner to sign an investment agreement with Taiwan since 2016, following earlier agreements with the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Canada, the OTN said. The deal marks a significant milestone in the development of
The entire Alishan Forest Railway line is to reopen for the first time in 15 years on Saturday, with tickets to go on sale at 2pm today. The historic railway from Chiayi to Alishan (阿里山) is finally set to reopen after the completion of the final No. 42 tunnel, Alishan Forest Railway and Cultural Heritage Office Deputy Director-General Chou Heng-kai (周恆凱) said. It is to run on a new timetable, with four trains daily, he said. The 9am train is to depart from Chiayi Railway Station bound for Shizilu Station (十字路), while the 10am train departing from Chiayi is to go all the
CROSS-BORDER CRIME: The suspects cannot be charged with cybercrime in Indonesia as their targets were in Malaysia, an Indonesian immigration director said Indonesian immigration authorities have detained 103 Taiwanese after a raid at a villa on Bali, officials said yesterday. They were accused of misusing their visas and residence permits, and are suspected of possible cybercrimes, Safar Muhammad Godam, director of immigration supervision and enforcement at the Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights told reporters at a news conference. “The 103 foreign nationals stayed at the villa and conducted suspicious activities, which we suspect are activities related to cybercrime activities,” he said, presenting laptops and routers at the news conference. Godam said Indonesian authorities cannot charge them with conducting cybercrime. “During the inspection, we