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.
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