After hours of negotiations, lawmakers across party lines yesterday finally agreed to set the ratification threshold for constitutional amendments and territorial changes at 75 percent.
The accord should guarantee the passage of the statute on the National Assembly's exercise of power (
Meanwhile, the legislature's Home and Nations Committee yesterday passed the preliminary review of the draft amendments to the Offshore Islands Development Law (
Some of the controversial articles in the draft amendments, however, were put aside for further cross-party negotiation and possible public hearings before the bill proceeds to the plenary legislative session for its second and third reading.
Yesterday's multiparty negotiations, presided over by Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
The threshold for approving territorial changes will require the presence of two-thirds of the Assembly's members, and the consent of three-fourths of those members. A simple majority of the Assembly members is required for the impeachment of the president and vice president.
INDIGNANT
Regarding the establishment of casinos on outlying islands, independent Legislator Lin Pin-kun (
"I am telling you, if the DPP keeps boycotting this bill like you are now, you will lose every single vote in the [Penghu] constituency," Lin said.
Undaunted by Lin's threat, Chiu said that many bills concerning people's livelihood proposed by his caucus have also been rejected by the pan-blue alliance. They include the statute governing the 2008 Taiwan Expo, the special arms procurement plan and budget, and the five-year, NT$500 billion Ten Major Construction Projects package.
ECONOMIC FIX?
The DPP caucus argues that legalizing casinos on outlying islands is not the answer to those communities' economic woes. It contends that the legalization of gambling will adversely affect business in other trades, hurt natural resources and make gambling a permanent fixture of life on outlying islands.
Chang Ching-sen (
Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (
He told Penghu residents and officials appealing to him on Tuesday that if the government issues only two licenses to establish casinos in special tourism districts on outlying islands, his understanding was that they might go to Penghu and Kinmen.
The bill managed to pass committee review during the last legislature, but failed to pass the third reading on the final day of the last session.
According to legislative procedures, bills failing to clear the legislature during a previous session have to start from scratch during the next legislative session.
More than 13 opinion polls have been conducted on the issue between 1995 and last year.
Nine polls have shown a majority of people support the legalization of casinos on outlying islands, while four polls show a majority of people are against it.
The last poll was held in Penghu in December. In that poll about 57 percent of the archipelago's residents supported the legalization of casinos, while about 43 percent voted against it.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
BACK TO WORK? Prosecutors said they are considering filing an appeal, while the Hsinchu City Government said it has applied for Ann Kao’s reinstatement as mayor The High Court yesterday found suspended Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) not guilty of embezzling assistant fees, reducing her sentence to six months in prison commutable to a fine from seven years and four months. The verdict acquitted Kao of the corruption charge, but found her guilty of causing a public official to commit document forgery. The High Prosecutors’ Office said it is reviewing the ruling and considering whether to file an appeal. The Taipei District Court in July last year sentenced Kao to seven years and four months in prison, along with a four-year deprivation of civil rights, for contravening the Anti-Corruption
NO CONFIDENCE MOTION? The premier said that being toppled by the legislature for defending the Constitution would be a democratic badge of honor for him Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday announced that the Cabinet would not countersign the amendments to the local revenue-sharing law passed by the Legislative Yuan last month. Cho said the decision not to countersign the amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) was made in accordance with the Constitution. “The decision aims to safeguard our Constitution,” he said. The Constitution stipulates the president shall, in accordance with law, promulgate laws and issue mandates with the countersignature of the head of the Executive Yuan, or with the countersignatures of both the head of the Executive Yuan and ministers or
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