Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators boycotted a Transportation Committee meeting yesterday to show their opposition to a proposed amendment to the Act for Promotion of Private Participation in Infrastructure Projects (促進民間參與公共建設法) that would allow Chinese investment in public construction works.
DPP Legislator Yeh Yi-ching (葉宜津) said the committee had passed a resolution asking the Public Construction Commission (PCC) to hold a hearing on the amendment. The commission held a hearing but did not include suggestions and recommendations made by experts at the hearing in its report, she said.
The amendment presented to legislators yesterday did not specify in what areas Chinese companies would be allowed to invest or what areas they would be barred from, Yeh said.
“However, a commission press release on May 11 said 11 areas related to infrastructure at the proposed [Taoyuan] airport zone, seaports and tourism and entertainment would be opened for Chinese investment following the build-operate-transfer [BOT] model,” she said. “Are you planning on selling Taiwan to China or what?”
She said it would be inappropriate to review the amendment article by article so the commission should redo its proposal and resubmit it.
Yeh’s motion was quickly seconded by her DPP colleagues, including some non-committee members. They accused the government of planning to outsource Taiwan’s mountains and seas to China as a BOT project.
Enraged by the words of the committee chair — Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Tsao Erh-chang (曹爾忠), who said the proposed amendment was legitimate and legal — the DPP committe members took Tsao’s seat and blocked Public Construction Commission Chairman Fan Liang-shiou (范良銹) from responding to accusations from legislators.
“I’m not selling out Taiwan [to China],” Fan said.
DPP Legislator Kuo Wen-chen (郭玟成) stood on the chairman’s desk and yelled at KMT legislators who had accused him of making a show.
Tsao was forced to dismiss the morning session of the committee meeting because of the uproar. The afternoon session did not review the amendment because of the DPP boycott. Tsao said the committee would resume its review tomorrow.
Fan said the 11 areas proposed for Chinese investment had been drawn up through interdepartmental discussions.
“There was no way that the commission had the authority to unilaterally decide on issues regarding Chinese investment,” Fan said.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
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
RSS