Representative to Japan Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) is required to report to the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense committee on Thursday after his remarks about Japan’s plan to discharge water from the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant sparked controversy, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Liao Wan-ju (廖婉汝) said yesterday.
Japan on April 13 announced that it plans to release treated water containing tritium from the wrecked nuclear plant into the ocean, despite protests from neighboring countries.
While he lodged a protest to Tokyo on behalf of the government, he cannot ignore that Taiwan discharges water from three nuclear power plants into the ocean, Hsieh wrote on Wednesday last week.
Taiwan discharges wastewater according to normal standards, which is entirely different from the situation at the Japanese plant, Atomic Energy Council (AEC) Minister Hsieh Shou-shing (謝曉星) told a legislative session on Wednesday, adding that Frank Hsieh is not an expert on the issue.
The KMT on Thursday reported to the National Policy Agency that it suspects Frank Hsieh of spreading disinformation.
Due to Frank Hsieh’s remarks, he would be required on Thursday to report to the committee regarding the development and prospects of Taiwan-Japan relations, said Liao, who is the committee’s convener.
The committee originally had other plans for that day, but changed the agenda because of Frank Hsieh, Liao said.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) and officials from the AEC, the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taiwan Power Co, the Ocean Affairs Council and the Council of Agriculture are also required to attend the meeting, the agenda shows.
Instead of speaking for Taiwan’s fisheries, the representative chose to defend Japan’s decision and even criticized his own country, which is totally unacceptable, Liao said, asking: “Does Frank Hsieh represent Taiwan or Japan?”
While Taiwan hopes to improve relations with Japan and the US, it should be done on the basis of democracy, freedom and defense assistance, rather than through such means as Frank Hsieh employed, she said.
He should attend Thursday’s meeting in person, Liao said, adding that amid the COVID-19 pandemic, he should follow travel protocols that foreign visitors in business or diplomatic “bubbles” face.
Taiwan People’s Party caucus deputy convener Ann Kao (高虹安) said that her caucus also demands that Frank Hsieh attend the committee session, even if that means a videoconference while he is in quarantine.
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