Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators Chiu Yi-ying (邱議瑩) and Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) yesterday criticized the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) for referring Chiu to the legislature’s Discipline Committee and including a proposal to suspend Kuan in tomorrow’s plenary agenda, while stalling proposals to punish two KMT lawmakers.
Chiu said that the pan-blue-controlled Procedure Committee’s decision to discipline her and Kuan showed that the KMT would attack whoever acted against its will.
Chiu said she was not surprised that the Procedure Committee approved the KMT caucus’ proposal that she be referred to the Discipline Committee.
At a separate setting yesterday, Kuan accused the Procedure Committee of trying to clear the “roadblocks” to giving recognition to Chinese education credentials and accepting Chinese students.
“I have been the KMT’s prime enemy for my relentless questioning of government policy. They may be able to take a break after suspending me,” Kuan said.
The KMT caucus proposed referring Chiu to the Discipline Committee after a verbal and physical altercation between Chiu and KMT Legislator Lee Ching-hua (李慶華) on Wednesday last week.
During a meeting of the Internal Administration Committee for cross-strait negotiators to brief the legislature ahead of the third round of cross-strait talks, Chiu slapped Lee after h had challenged her to hit him and called her a “shrew.”
The Procedure Committee also voted in favor of putting the Discipline Committee’s suggestion that Kuan be suspended for a period of three months to a vote tomorrow. The Discipline Committee, composed of 15 KMT lawmakers, reached the decision during a closed-door meeting on Jan. 9.
The committee initiated the proposal after Kuan allegedly slapped KMT Legislator Hung Hsiu-chu (洪秀柱) in the face during a review of the National Science Council’s budget request on Oct. 22. Kuan slapped Hung after the KMT legislator hurt one of Kuan’s assistants while trying to push a poster to one side. The legislature did not refer Hung to the Discipline Committee.
Although the Procedure Committee approved the proposals against Chiu and Kuan, it shelved the DPP caucus’ proposal to mete out punishment to Lee and another proposal to punish KMT Legislator Lu Chia-chen (盧嘉辰).
Lu came under fire last month for saying that Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) suffered a stroke because of bad karma after dismantling a statue of dictator Chiang Kai-shek in Kaohsiung.
DPP Legislator Chen Ting-fei (陳亭妃) told reporters yesterday her caucus would do its best to boycott the proposal against Kuan tomorrow.
Despite the criticism, KMT caucus whip Lin Yi-shih (林益世) said even if it was unavoidable that lawmakers would get into heated exchanges on the legislative floor, legislators should never resort to physical violence against their colleagues.
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first