A dispute between government branches continued today over a Chinese-born lawmaker who allegedly failed to renounce her Chinese citizenship before being sworn in as a legislator for the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP).
Newly-sworn in TPP Legislator Li Zhenxiu (李貞秀) appeared before the Legislative Yuan’s Internal Administration Committee for the first time today, where she asked questions before an empty podium after the committee’s convenor, Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lee Po-yi (李柏毅), said that government officials did not have to respond to her questioning.
The committee respects Li’s right to speak, but also the Cabinet’s position that officials do not need to respond, he said.
Photo: Wang Yi-sung, Taipei Times
The committee would act in accordance with the legal consultation announced by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) last week.
On Wednesday, Han said he would back Li’s right to assume her seat until the courts reach a final verdict.
Li is a Chinese-born spouse of a Taiwanese who allegedly failed to fulfil several qualifying conditions to take office, including renouncing her Chinese citizenship.
She obtained Taiwanese residency in 1999, but did not submit any proof of having relinquished her household registration in China until March last year, Mainland Affairs Council Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said.
People from the Chinese area must continuously have a registered household in Taiwan for 10 years before being eligible to serve as a legislator, he said.
Minister of the Interior Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳) refused to take the stand today, resulting in Li directing questions at an empty podium.
“I am a legislator of the Republic of China,” Li said, and repeatedly asked Liu to step up to the podium.
The Ministry of the Interior “does not care about people’s livelihoods and only wants to continue political infighting,” she said.
Moreover, she said that the ruling DPP “does not care about justice,” and asked the convenor to make a fair ruling and respect a legislator in office.
“Taiwan is a country ruled by law and the Constitution,” she said, asking Liu to respect the Constitution.
DPP lawmaker Wang Mei-hui (王美惠) replied that the Constitution does not allow for dual nationality, implying she is therefore not constitutionally allowed to hold office.
Lee Po-yi added that the Ministry of the Interior would respond during the break to “questions raised by members of the public,” referring to Li.
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
NAMING SPAT: The foreign ministry called on Denmark to propose an acceptable solution to the erroneous nationality used for Taiwanese on residence permits Taiwan has revoked some privileges for Danish diplomatic staff over a Danish permit that lists “Taiwan” as “China,” Eric Huang (黃鈞耀), head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of European Affairs, told a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Reporters asked Huang whether the Danish government had responded to the ministry’s request that it correct the nationality on Danish residence permits of Taiwanese, which has been listed as “China” since 2024. Taiwan’s representative office in Denmark continues to communicate with the Danish government, and the ministry has revoked some privileges previously granted to Danish representatives in Taiwan and would continue to review
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
RSS