Opposition lawmakers voting in the majority on Friday turned down a request from the Cabinet to review a set of controversial amendments to expand the legislature’s powers of investigation.
The Executive Yuan is now required to accept the bills as law under Article 3 of the Additional Articles of the Constitution.
The Cabinet last week returned the bills to the legislature for another round of consideration, saying they were unconstitutional and would be difficult to execute.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
In an anticipated move, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party lawmakers voted together to deny the request, which was submitted in two parts.
Voting started at 11:28am, and by 11:50am, a majority of 57 lawmakers had voted to maintain the bills as written.
The final vote was 62 to 51 along party lines.
Following the vote, the Executive Yuan said it would file a request for a constitutional interpretation after the amendments go into effect.
The Democratic Progressive Party has previously said it would seek a constitutional interpretation if the bills are finalized, as well as a possible temporary injunction on implementing the new rules until the courts can rule on their legality.
The amendments to the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院職權行使法) and the Criminal Code passed on May 28 authorize the legislature to hold investigative hearings and issue penalties for holding the legislature in contempt, including jail time for government officials.
They also require the president to take questions from lawmakers during regular state of the nation addresses.
A Chinese freighter that allegedly snapped an undersea cable linking Taiwan proper to Penghu County is suspected of being owned by a Chinese state-run company and had docked at the ports of Kaohsiung and Keelung for three months using different names. On Tuesday last week, the Togo-flagged freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) and its Chinese crew were detained after the Taipei-Penghu No. 3 submarine cable was severed. When the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) first attempted to detain the ship on grounds of possible sabotage, its crew said the ship’s name was Hong Tai 168, although the Automatic Identification System (AIS)
An Akizuki-class destroyer last month made the first-ever solo transit of a Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force ship through the Taiwan Strait, Japanese government officials with knowledge of the matter said yesterday. The JS Akizuki carried out a north-to-south transit through the Taiwan Strait on Feb. 5 as it sailed to the South China Sea to participate in a joint exercise with US, Australian and Philippine forces that day. The Japanese destroyer JS Sazanami in September last year made the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force’s first-ever transit through the Taiwan Strait, but it was joined by vessels from New Zealand and Australia,
SECURITY: The purpose for giving Hong Kong and Macau residents more lenient paths to permanent residency no longer applies due to China’s policies, a source said The government is considering removing an optional path to citizenship for residents from Hong Kong and Macau, and lengthening the terms for permanent residence eligibility, a source said yesterday. In a bid to prevent the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from infiltrating Taiwan through immigration from Hong Kong and Macau, the government could amend immigration laws for residents of the territories who currently receive preferential treatment, an official familiar with the matter speaking on condition of anonymity said. The move was part of “national security-related legislative reform,” they added. Under the amendments, arrivals from the Chinese territories would have to reside in Taiwan for
CRITICAL MOVE: TSMC’s plan to invest another US$100 billion in US chipmaking would boost Taiwan’s competitive edge in the global market, the premier said The government would ensure that the most advanced chipmaking technology stays in Taiwan while assisting Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in investing overseas, the Presidential Office said yesterday. The statement follows a joint announcement by the world’s largest contract chipmaker and US President Donald Trump on Monday that TSMC would invest an additional US$100 billion over the next four years to expand its semiconductor manufacturing operations in the US, which would include construction of three new chip fabrication plants, two advanced packaging facilities, and a research and development center. The government knew about the deal in advance and would assist, Presidential
RSS