Today’s weekly Cabinet meeting is to discuss whether to file for a constitutional interpretation of amendments to the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院職權行使法) and the Criminal Code, Minister without Portfolio Lin Ming-hsin (林明昕) said yesterday.
Lin made the remarks after both the Presidential Office and the Control Yuan announced earlier this week that they would file for a constitutional interpretation and an injunction against the amendments, which came into effect yesterday.
President William Lai (賴清德) on Monday said that the Presidential Office has asked for a constitutional interpretation to protect the people. The Control Yuan on Tuesday said that the amendments infringed on its constitutional rights of inquiry.
Photo: CNA
A separate source in the Executive Yuan said it publicly expressed its thoughts on the amendments when it petitioned the legislature to convene another vote on the amendments.
Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) on Wednesday last week said at the legislature in Taipei that the original review of the amendments contravened democratic principles, risked being unconstitutional, could infringe on people’s fundamental rights and challenged the doctrine of the separation of powers.
The source said that if the Cabinet handles the issue, it would be in the form of an interim motion, or Cho would issue a “reminder” for the Executive Yuan to file for a constitutional interpretation on the amendments.
Separately, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus secretary-general Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) said the DPP caucus is also filing a petition with the Constitutional Court for a constitutional interpretation of the amendments and an injunction.
DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said this was “the crucial hour” to defend democracy and the rule of law.
Ker said that he hoped this instance of two government organs, the Presidential Office and a political party, jointly tendering a request for a constitutional interpretation would be the nation’s first and last.
Ker accused the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) of violating the Constitution and attempting to place the legislative branch over the other branches of government.
Wu said the amendment passed was not the version that the public wanted and was, instead, a blatant expansion of legislative power that was heavily critiqued by the public.
Lawyer Chen Peng-kuang (陳鵬光) said that if the Constitutional Court approves a temporary injunction, it would protect the constitutional system and people’s fundamental rights.
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
Taiwan and Thailand have signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral investment and trade, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN) said on Friday. The agreement on “Promotion and Protection of Investments” was signed by Representative to Thailand Chang Chun-fu (張俊福) and Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei executive director Narong Boonsatheanwong on Thursday, the OTN said in a news release. Thailand has become the fifth trading partner to sign an investment agreement with Taiwan since 2016, following earlier agreements with the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Canada, the OTN said. The deal marks a significant milestone in the development of
The entire Alishan Forest Railway line is to reopen for the first time in 15 years on Saturday, with tickets to go on sale at 2pm today. The historic railway from Chiayi to Alishan (阿里山) is finally set to reopen after the completion of the final No. 42 tunnel, Alishan Forest Railway and Cultural Heritage Office Deputy Director-General Chou Heng-kai (周恆凱) said. It is to run on a new timetable, with four trains daily, he said. The 9am train is to depart from Chiayi Railway Station bound for Shizilu Station (十字路), while the 10am train departing from Chiayi is to go all the
FLU CONTINUES: Hospitals reported 101,091 visits for flu-like illnesses last week, while 68 severe cases and 16 flu-related deaths were also reported, the CDC said The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported 932 hospitalizations due to COVID-19 and 64 related deaths for last week, adding that the number of people who had contracted new SARS-CoV-2 subvariants KP.2 and LB.1 has increased. The number of people hospitalized due to COVID-19 increased from 815 in the previous week to 932 last week, while 90 percent of the 64 deceased were aged 65 or older, CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said. JN.1 was still the dominant variant among local and imported cases in the past four weeks, while KP.2 was the second-most common, Lin said. Cases with the LB.1 subvariant