President Chen Shui-bian (
In his opening remark at the anti-nuclear convention in Taipei, Chen said the future of the plant would be decided by the people through a referendum, which would be held no later than the March presidential election.
Chen said the two decades of controversy over the plant have taken too great a toll on society.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
"I believe the public has been fully aware of information about the plant. It's time for people to make a final decision through a referendum," Chen said.
He said the referendum is a right of citizens and would strengthen parliamentary politics.
"This right can't be deprived or limited by any country, political party or person," Chen said.
He stressed that holding a referendum on the plant would fulfill a promise made by the DPP.
"We do so based on concerns about Taiwan's future energy policy and sustainable development rather than for the establishment of a legal basis for related laws mandating referendums," Chen said.
Chen said going nuclear-free reflects both an adjustment of values and a choice of lifestyle.
He said the country should promote energy conservation and the adoption of renewable energy in order to ensure environmental sustainability.
In addition, Chen said problems with the relocation of nuclear waste stored on Orchid Island would be solved by the end of the year.
Chen said the power plant isn't the only policy that can be put to a referendum.
Cabinet Spokesman Lin Chia-lung (
Minister without Portfolio Hsu Chih-hsiung (
Residents of Kungliao, where the controversial plant is being built, said at the conference that a regional referendum held in 1994 in the township suggested that 96 percent of residents are against the plant.
If free access to information on the plant and transparency of the decision-making process remain unavailable, the nationwide referendum would sacrifice Kungliao for economic development, said Wu Wen-tung (吳文通), spokesman for the Kungliao-based Yenliao Anti-Nuclear Self-Help Association.
At the conference, topics included strategies to phase out nuclear energy, the decommissioning of existing nuclear plants, the adoption of renewable energy and the disposal of nuclear waste. The experiences of the US, Japan and Sweden were also presented.
Meanwhile, blasting air horns and waving signs, more than 1,000 employees of state-run Taiwan Power Company demonstrated outside the convention, expressing their opposition to the planned phase-out of nuclear energy.
"The referendum should not be applied to the ongoing project," Taiwan Power Labor Union Director-General Shih Chao-hsien (施朝賢) said.
Shih said that terminating the project would cause at least NT$150 billion in financial losses.
Anti-nuclear activists, meanwhile, said halting construction of the plant was the first step toward making the nation nuclear-free. They urged the government to freeze the budget for the new plant and to enhance security at the three operational nuclear plants.
Also see stories:
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique