The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday announced that it is to review a proposed whistle-blower protection law (吹哨者保護法) this month.
The draft act is part of the KMT caucus’ legislative package that it pledged to complete to “return rights to the people,” along with the amendments to the Criminal Code (刑法) and the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院職權行使法), KMT caucus secretary-general Hung Mong-kai (洪孟楷) said, adding that the review could begin in the middle of this month.
“The Executive Yuan has yet to propose its version of the whistle-blower protection act, but we are determined to review the draft act article by article in this legislative session,” Hung said.
Photo: Hsieh Chun-lin, Taipei Times
“We want to let the public see that this is a new legislature and that the KMT caucus would proceed with its own legislative agenda at a proper pace. The DPP caucus should stop rejecting our efforts to do so and the executive branch should try to keep up with our pace,” he added.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus secretary-general Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said that she respects the right of opposition lawmakers to propose the draft act.
“No one in Taiwan would dispute having such legislation, as well as the spirit and principles that should be laid out in the draft act,” Wu said yesterday. “However, we need to first consider the scope and what aspects the draft act should cover.”
The success of the draft act depends on whether it can be implemented, she added.
“The government’s position has been that the draft act should apply to government departments. However, if we want the draft act to apply to private corporations, we need to consider whether that is feasible,” she said.
Justice officials would need time to review the legislation, Wu added.
“The draft act involves rights and obligations of many stakeholders. It is better that we consider various aspects of the legislation when we review it,” she said.
Meanwhile, Wu reiterated in a meeting of the legislature’s Judiciary and Organic Laws and Statutes Committee that the DPP supports constitutional and legislative reform.
“Authentic reform requires that our duties match our rights stated in the Constitution. Any proposed amendment should not be above the Constitution,” she said.
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