National Assembly deputies yesterday passed the third and final reading of a historic constitutional amendment package aimed at reducing their own powers. The reform package was based on a consensus reached by the major political parties -- including the KMT, DPP and New Party.
The entire package of amendments -- the last to be initiated by the Assembly -- passed at 11:10pm, by a vote of 285 to 0. There were two abstentions.
Acting Assembly speaker Chen Chin-jang (
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
"It meets public expectations and can reduce the costs for elections, while at the same time maintaining the existing constitutional structure," Chen said.
The package transfers many of the functions of the Assembly to the Legislative Yuan from May 20, when the term of incumbent Assembly deputies expires.
In addition, the package added an additional 25 seats to the legislature, giving it a total of 250 seats.
DPP Secretary-General You Shi-kun, reacting to the passage of the amendments said: "I am very happy with the result. this has been a goal of the DPP for many years."
Although the Assembly will retain the power to vote on the impeachment of the president or vice president, on constitutional amendments and on proposals to redraw national boundaries, it will no longer have the right to initiate such changes by itself. The right to formally propose such measures will, in future, belong to legislature.
The Assembly will also cease to be a permanent standing body, but will convene only when impeachment, constitutional reforms or national boundary changes have been formally proposed.
The New Party, in a statement released after the reform's completion, said that making the Assembly a non-standing body would help steady the constitutional system.
"The National Assembly has launched six constitutional reforms over the past 10 years based on some impromptu interests, which has triggered much public criticism and caused a number of contradictions in the constitutional system," the statement said.
The Assembly will meet for no more than one month on each occasion and will be disbanded as soon as the proposed measures are completed. On each occasion, 300 delegates will be appointed by political parties on a proportional representation basis. The method of such an election will be further set down by law. Other functions transferred to the Legislative Yuan include the power to elect the vice president when the office is vacant; initiating a proposal to recall the president or vice president; and confirming Judicial Yuan, Examination Yuan and Control Yuan appointments after they have been forwarded by the president.
The president will from now on deliver his annual state-of-the-nation report to the Legislative Yuan, instead of the Assembly. An amendment was also passed lifting Constitutional restrictions under which the president can be subject to impeachment. Previously, the president could be impeached only if he or she was charged with treason or sedition -- conditions considered too narrow.
For the first time ever, the Assembly also voted on the proposed amendments by open ballot -- making public the stand of each deputy. Determined to have the marginalization package passed, the KMT, DPP and New Party caucuses had all announced they would take disciplinary action against deputies disobeying the party line.
Patrick Huang (黃澎孝), convener of the People First Party caucus -- which is opposed to what it called "hasty" reforms, warned that the new system to appoint National Assembly deputies by proportional representation ran against democratic principles. Huang said he would not rule out filing an application with the Council of Grand Justices for a constitutional interpretation. In addition, another amendment is intended to give priority to government budgets for social welfare spending and protect the benefits of retired servicemen. Also, grand justices will no longer enjoy lifetime privileges.
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
RSS