President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) yesterday called for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers to fully support a draft bill that would ease import restrictions on beef containing residues of the feed additive ractopamine. He warned of grave consequences for Taiwan’s economic and trade liberalization if the bill failed to clear the legislature on Tuesday.
Ma, who doubles as KMT chairman, reiterated at a caucus meeting that US beef containing the controversial lean meat enhancer was safe in an attempt to ensure cooperation from all KMT legislators during Tuesday’s vote on an amendment to the Act Governing Food Sanitation (食品衛生管理法). He said lifting the ban was a prerequisite for the resumption of negotiations with the US on the Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA).
“There will be grave consequences if the amendment fails to pass the legislature next week. Our efforts in economic and trade liberalization will be compromised. The US will doubt our determination in bilateral trade cooperation and it would be unbearable for us,” he said at the meeting held at the KMT’s headquarters last night.
Premier Sean Chen (陳冲) and other top Cabinet officials also attended the meeting in a show of party unity amid concerns about opposition to the amendment from within the party. Fourteen KMT legislators have expressed support for a zero-tolerance policy on US beef imports containing the livestock feed additive.
Linking the US beef import issue to the nation’s economic future, Ma said resuming bilateral negotiations under the TIFA would help facilitate the signing of free-trade agreements or economic pacts with major trade partners.
“We are facing a critical moment in history, and whether the amendment can pass the legislature will affect the nation’s future. It’s not only about the import of US beef products,” he said.
He dismissed the Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) proposed “EU model,” under which imports of US beef from designated US farms without ractopamine residue would be allowed, saying it was “unrealistic” because Taiwan cannot afford to fight a long legal battle with the US over imports of US beef without ractopamine residues.
“This is not a vote for Ma Ying-jeou or the KMT, it’s a vote to support Taiwan’s future,” he said, while denying the US has been pressuring Taiwan over the issue.
Fifty-nine of the 64 KMT lawmakers attended last night’s meeting.
KMT whip Lin Hung-chih (林鴻池) said after the meeting that the caucus had approved a proposal that KMT lawmakers should toe the party line on major policies and bills. Legislators who attended the meeting agreed that any legislator who was absent from the vote, or voted against the amendment on Tuesday, would face a fine and disciplinary action, he said.
That agreement will be put to the test, because some KMT legislators continued to voice concerns about the amendment — Alex Tsai (蔡正元) said he would not vote for the Cabinet’s version, while Lo Shu-lei (羅淑蕾) remained undecided.
Lin said the party would continue to communicate with lawmakers who still have concerns about the draft. The Cabinet will also explain the amendment to the public before the legislative vote.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft