Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers yesterday urged the government to submit plans to create a ministry for maritime affairs within one year.
Additionally, a basic law governing maritime affairs should be passed by late next year, lawmakers Lai Jui-lung (賴瑞隆), Chen Man-li (陳曼麗) and Kolas Yotaka told a news conference at the legislature.
The measures are to help integrate maritime policy across sustainable development, research and sea tourism, they said.
Photo: Huang Hsu-lei, Taipei Times
Directorate-General of Personnel Management official Yang Hsiu-chen (楊秀珍) said the government is to complete a draft bill for review at the next session of the Legislative Yuan.
In June 2015, the legislature passed the Organization Act of the Ocean Affairs Council (海洋委員會組織法), which would have mandated the creation of the ocean affairs council in July last year.
However, the legislators who took office in March last year passed a resolution to suspend the council’s promulgation.
Lai, Chen and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Apollo Chen (陳學聖) laster proposed amendments to the law that would upgrade the ocean affairs council to a ministry-level organization.
Distributing responsibilities over environmental protection, tourism and other maritime issues to multiple agencies has the effect of diluting the government’s efforts, said Lai, a former Kaohsiung Marine Bureau director.
“On the day before World Oceans Day, I call on the Executive Yuan to accelerate the establishment of the ministry for maritime affairs; only a powerful, responsible agency can promote policies,” he said.
Lai said Indonesia and Sweden have a ministry-level agency to supervise maritime affairs, while Japan and Canada have a basic law governing oceanic issues.
As a maritime nation, Taiwan urgently needs a ministry of maritime affairs, Lai said.
Lawmakers suspended the council because they believe the President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) administration should have a ministry-level establishment overseeing seas, Lai said.
Kolas Yotaka said a maritime affairs ministry is symbolic of Taiwan’s identity as an independent state and would help many Aborigines who live by rivers and the ocean.
Calls to create a maritime affairs ministry have been raised many times over the past two decades, National Taiwan Ocean University Institute of Marine Affairs and Research Management dean Julia Huang (黃向文) said.
The fishing industry’s use of oceanic resources are poorly regulated and are misunderstood by the government, she said.
Ocean acidity levels and marine debris in the nation’s seas are not included in Environmental Protection Administration surveys, Huang said.
There are a large number of international laws regulating the use of the sea that the government has yet to implement, she said.
“Although Taiwan prides itself as a maritime nation, government organizations are poorly coordinated and communications between them is spotty,” she said.
“The public has gained more ocean awareness and there are many initiatives by private citizens to clean beaches or protect the ocean. The government should not fall behind the people’s lead. A ministry of maritime affairs should be created as soon as possible,” she added.
Greenpeace Taiwan oceans campaigner Yen Ning (顏寧) said the past two administrations had both affirmed the importance of the ocean, but did little to resolve the competing needs of resource use, conservation and development.
Taiwan should have a ministry of maritime affairs at the earliest possible time and the government should push for truly forward-looking policies, Yen said.
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated
RSS