In what has become a signature of legislative politics, lawmakers yesterday began brawling on the legislative floor over a controversial piece of legislation.
The brawl began over a Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT)-proposed bill that would make the Central Election Commission (CEC) an organization whose members are selected in proportion to a party's number of seats in the legislature.
The conflict erupted after Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) tried to open yesterday's plenary session, which was scheduled to review the CEC organic law (中選會組織法).
PHOTO: SUNG CHIH-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
This was to be followed by a review of this year's government budget request.
Wang was initially unable to enter the chamber, as scores of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers cornered him in the speaker's break room in the rear part of the chamber.
He finally managed to escape and made his way into the chamber after KMT lawmakers rushed the DPP blockade and shoved their way through their opposing lawmakers.
But Wang was still unable to preside over the meeting.
Dozens of pan-green lawmakers rushed at Wang from his right and pushed him from the dais, despite a scrum of dozens of pan-blue lawmakers who were trying to push back from Wang's left.
Non-Partisan Solidarity Union Legislator Yen Ching-piao (顏清標) tried unsuccessfully to use his large physical presence to try to create a corridor for Wang.
Police stood by during the melee and did not try to intervene.
The wrestling left several legislators injured, with three medical personnel treating the casualties right on the floor.
The meeting then went into a recess.
Lawmakers who took part in the scuffle blamed the other side for the fight.
"Former KMT chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) has to take responsibility for today's incident, because he asked the KMT caucus whip to boycott talks on the controversial CEC bill," DPP legislative caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) said.
Ker said the KMT legislative caucus went back on a promise they had made on Monday that they would participate in party negotiations between Wang and Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌).
But KMT legislative caucus whip Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權) denied Ma was responsible, saying the negotiations were simply a "delaying tactic" by the DPP to block the CEC bill.
After a meeting with Wang yesterday afternoon, KMT legislative caucus whips eventually agreed to talk with Su on the CEC bill today.
"In [today's] negotiations, I hope the Executive Yuan will come up with a proposal [to amend the CEC] that is acceptable to the pan-blue camp," Wang said.
The DPP accuses the KMT of pushing the passage of the CEC bill in an effort to thwart a referendum over recovering the KMT's stolen assets.
Additional reporting by AP
Authorities have detained three former Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TMSC, 台積電) employees on suspicion of compromising classified technology used in making 2-nanometer chips, the Taiwan High Prosecutors’ Office said yesterday. Prosecutors are holding a former TSMC engineer surnamed Chen (陳) and two recently sacked TSMC engineers, including one person surnamed Wu (吳) in detention with restricted communication, following an investigation launched on July 25, a statement said. The announcement came a day after Nikkei Asia reported on the technology theft in an exclusive story, saying TSMC had fired two workers for contravening data rules on advanced chipmaking technology. Two-nanometer wafers are the most
NEW GEAR: On top of the new Tien Kung IV air defense missiles, the military is expected to place orders for a new combat vehicle next year for delivery in 2028 Mass production of Tien Kung IV (Sky Bow IV) missiles is expected to start next year, with plans to order 122 pods, the Ministry of National Defense’s (MND) latest list of regulated military material showed. The document said that the armed forces would obtain 46 pods of the air defense missiles next year and 76 pods the year after that. The Tien Kung IV is designed to intercept cruise missiles and ballistic missiles to an altitude of 70km, compared with the 60km maximum altitude achieved by the Missile Segment Enhancement variant of PAC-3 systems. A defense source said yesterday that the number of
A bipartisan group of US representatives have introduced a draft US-Taiwan Defense Innovation Partnership bill, aimed at accelerating defense technology collaboration between Taiwan and the US in response to ongoing aggression by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The bill was introduced by US representatives Zach Nunn and Jill Tokuda, with US House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party Chairman John Moolenaar and US Representative Ashley Hinson joining as original cosponsors, a news release issued by Tokuda’s office on Thursday said. The draft bill “directs the US Department of Defense to work directly with Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defense through their respective
Tsunami waves were possible in three areas of Kamchatka in Russia’s Far East, the Russian Ministry for Emergency Services said yesterday after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake hit the nearby Kuril Islands. “The expected wave heights are low, but you must still move away from the shore,” the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app, after the latest seismic activity in the area. However, the Pacific Tsunami Warning System in Hawaii said there was no tsunami warning after the quake. The Russian tsunami alert was later canceled. Overnight, the Krasheninnikov volcano in Kamchatka erupted for the first time in 600 years, Russia’s RIA