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.
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