“The safety standards adopted in lifting imports were stricter than in the EU and South Korea, but people still have concerns. The actions taken by local governments are to clear the public’s mind of doubt and they deserve approval,” Wu said.
Wu said he supported the movement, adding that consumers would make the final decision.
“They can choose to eat [US beef and beef products] or not,” he said.
He also denied allegations that the government decided to lift the restrictions in exchange for the resumption of the US-Taiwan Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFA) talks.
When asked to comment on a joint announcement released by the four major importers and exporters associations that said they would hold off on importing ground beef and internal organs from the US, Executive Yuan Spokesman Su Jun-pin (蘇俊賓) said that “the government was not involved in this.”
In related developments, the Ministry of Education’s Department of Physical Education Director Wang Chun-chuan (王俊權) said the ministry would not encourage schools to include US beef in their school lunch menus until the Department of Health has confirmed the safety of US beef.
Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) also urged the government to rethink its decision to relax US beef import regulations.
The DPP demanded the government relaunch negotiations with Washington and said the ban would have minimal impact on Taiwan’s bid for a TIFA. The party called on the government to delay relaxing the ban until further discussions can be held.
Speaking at a press conference, DPP Department of International Affairs Director Hsiao Bi-khim (蕭美琴) told a press conference the government had failed the people by not sticking to its ground.
Moreover, she said, the government never consulted health experts before making its decision.
“There are losses and gains to each trade deal. But we can’t tell what Taiwan has gained from this one,” she said, adding that Taiwan did not seek any quid pro quo from the US for agreeing to open up the market.
If the KMT can botch a negotiation with the US — a friendly country — imagine how much more damage it can do when it tries to forge a deal with a hostile country like China, she said.
Meanwhile, one day after he announced his boycott, Hau urged the public to refrain from politicizing the matter. Hau said on Monday that the city government would form an “Anti-US Ground Beef, Intestines and Spinal Cords Association” and encourage the more than 15,000 restaurants, department stores and supermarkets in Taipei to join a boycott. Taipei was the first local government to announce action against the central government’s beef policy.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JENNY W. HSU AND CNA
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