The Cabinet yesterday approved proposed amendments to the Political Donations Act (政治獻金法) aimed at increasing the transparency of campaign financing and reducing the risk of illegal activities, the Executive Yuan said.
The drafts were approved at a meeting chaired by Premier William Lai (賴清德), who described them as an embodiment of the resolutions made by the National Congress on Judicial Reform.
If passed by the Legislative Yuan, the amendments would require that contributions to politicians from individual and corporate donors be made public through the Control Yuan’s Web site, Deputy Minister of the Interior Hua Ching-chun (花敬群) said.
Photo: Lee Hsin-fang, Taipei Times
The Political Donations Act requires the Control Yuan to publish online only a political campaign’s final accounts, whereas the proposal would require the publication of all 25 items in campaign finance reports, he said.
The amendments also stipulate that the Control Yuan publish the campaign finance reports of each politician in full, instead of just a portion of them, he said.
They would shift the period during which township mayoral candidates are permitted to receive political contributions to coincide with those of city and county councilor candidates, officials said.
City and county councilor candidates are allowed to receive donations starting from eight months before the current postholder’s tenure is expected to expire until the day before election day.
The amendments would also establish a legal framework for political contributions made to the campaigns of Aboriginal district administrators and city councilors in the six special municipalities, the premier said.
Clearer regulations would help protect the political rights of Aboriginal citizens and their elected representatives, he said.
The Ministry of the Interior has been told to help party caucuses facilitate the speedy passage of the bill through the legislature, he said.
The Executive Yuan is also considering drafting additional amendments that would legalize and regulate campaign contributions during recall elections as part of its next round of campaign finance law reforms, a Ministry of the Interior official said on condition of anonymity.
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
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
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