Until China and Taiwan agree on their political relationship through a democratic process, the present Constitution should cease to apply and a "second republic" constitution should be enacted, a local think tank said yesterday.
The pro-independence Taiwan Thinktank made public a draft of the "second republic" constitution penned by Chen Ming-tong (陳明通), a professor at the National Taiwan University's Graduate Institute of National Development; Chen Tsi-yang (陳慈陽), a law professor at National Taipei University; and Chen In-chin (陳英鈐), a law professor at Ming Chuan University.
Chen Ming-tong said he was inspired by former presidential adviser Koo Kwang-ming (辜寬敏), who has been pushing for what he called a "second republic" constitution, while leaving the constitution's details open to interpretation.
Koo's proposal received a response from President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁), who said future constitutional reforms could take the form of a "second republic."
Chen Ming-tong claimed that a public consensus to push for constitutional reform has been reached and that there are more than 15 different versions of constitutional amendments or new constitution drafts had been proposed by different groups.
"The `second republic' constitution provides another alternative, but it is not written for election purposes but for the sustainable development of the country," he said.
The think tank's version declares that Taiwan and China are two different countries and that Taiwanese have the final say on the country's future.
The preamble of the draft states that the Republic of China (ROC) was founded in 1911 and relocated to Taiwan in 1949 after the establishment of the People's Republic of China (PRC).
The draft states that jurisdiction of the ROC covers Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and offshore islets. Any change to the political relationship between ROC and PRC must be decided by negotiations between the two sides based on equality and peace, pending the approval of Taiwanese.
Until the negotiations are complete, a "second republic" constitution, or Taiwan constitution, must be enacted and the ROC Constitution should cease to apply, the draft states.
Chen Ming-tong said that the "second republic" process is open to all possible options in terms of the country's future as long as the process is open and democratic.
"If China wishes to assimilate Taiwan, they have to convince Taiwanese in a civilized way rather than military intimidation or oppression," he said.
Although Chou Jih-shine (周繼祥), chairman of the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association, said that he recognized the necessity of addressing the historical relationship between Taiwan and China, he was pessimistic about the prospects of the draft constitution's passage in the legislature.
Chou said that not only could pro-independence groups find the draft unsatisfactory, but that pro-unification supporters might also deem it unacceptable.
Yen Jiann-fa (顏建發), a professor at Ching Yun University's Euro-Asia Research Center, agreed, saying that the US government might also have concerns about the proposal, which touches on politically sensitive issues.
The draft constitution also proposed to change the government system from semi-presidential to parliamentary, downsize the five-branch government to only three branches, let legislators assume half of the ministerial positions, to strip the president of powers but extend the presidential term from four years to six and to eliminate the position of the nation's vice president.
As the five-branch government would be downsized to three, the legislature would take over Control Yuan's investigative authority. The Examination Yuan would be replaced by a commission established under the Executive Yuan, which would be renamed.
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Hualien Branch of the High Court today sentenced the main suspect in the 2021 fatal derailment of the Taroko Express to 12 years and six months in jail in the second trial of the suspect for his role in Taiwan’s deadliest train crash. Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), the driver of a crane truck that fell onto the tracks and which the the Taiwan Railways Administration's (TRA) train crashed into in an accident that killed 49 people and injured 200, was sentenced to seven years and 10 months in the first trial by the Hualien District Court in 2022. Hoa Van Hao, a
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
RSS