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Associations' law amendments upheld

Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Wong Chung-chun, left, and Hsu Shu-po, right, chat with Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng, center, regarding the amendments to the Farmers' Association Law and Fishermen's Association Law at the legislature yesterday. The legislature voted to retain the amendments. PHOTO: CHIEN JUNG-FONG, TAIPEI TIMES

The legislature yesterday voted in favor of upholding two newly passed amendments to the Farmers' Association Law (農會法) and the Fishermen's Association Law (漁會法), enabling association staffers standing trial to retain their posts until a final verdict is passed.

At present the law states that indicted staff members would have to be dismissed when they are convicted in the second stage of a trial.

After the vote, a group of pan-blue lawmakers took to the floor of the legislature and chanted that Premier Chang Chun-hsiung (張俊雄) should step down for failing to push through the Cabinet's request the amendments be overturned.

Ten days after he became premier, Chang urged the legislature to overturn the amendments, saying that they would pave the way for the return of "black gold" politics and damage the development of the associations.

The Constitution allows the Cabinet, with the president's consent, to ask the legislature to reconsider a law or amendment if it deems a statutory, budgetary or treaty bill passed by the legislature difficult to implement.

The premier is not required by the Constitution to resign if the reconsideration request is rejected. However, the premier is required to accept the results of the vote.

"Despite the Constitution, we still think that Premier Chang has to take political responsibility for losing the vote," Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Tseng Yung-chuan (曾永權) said.

The Cabinet's request was defeated along party lines by a vote of 115 to 96. KMT Legislator Lee Sen-zong (李顯榮) and People First Part Party Legislator Liu Wen-hsiung (劉文雄) were absent from the vote, while KMT Legislator Chen Chao-rung (陳朝容) cast an invalid ballot.

Tseng said that Lee and Chen would be punished as the KMT had ordered its members to vote against the Cabinet's request.

Lee, who reportedly has been recruited by the Democratic Progressive Party to run in the January legislative elections, told reporters that he "was free of the KMT now that the KMT doesn't care about me."

Lee skipped the KMT's legislative primary after it failed to negotiate on nomination matters between him and KMT Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇).

Chen, who lost in the primary to Changhua County Council Deputy Spokesman Hsiao Ching-tien (蕭景田), said that he cast an invalid vote because he didn't want to place the burden of promoting "black gold" politics on KMT presidential candidate Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九).

PFP Spokesman Lee Hung-chun (李鴻鈞) said that Liu had gotten drunk on Monday night and couldn't make it to yesterday's vote.

Meanwhile, DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) condemned the KMT caucus.

"In the end, the KMT chose to ally itself with `black gold.' The KMT chose to stand in confrontation with the Taiwanese people," he told a press conference.

"Members of the KMT caucus gave in to their caucus whip's order. Where were all the `reformists?' How could they sabotage their own political careers to safeguard KMT's interests?" Ker said.

DPP Legislator Wu Ming-ming (吳明敏) told another press conference that allowing convicted personnel to stay in farmers' or fishermen's associations showed the KMT's preference for "black gold politics."

Wu said there were 906 senior staffers in the farmers' associations nationwide and 172 of them were found guilty in the first trials, 32 were found guilty in second trials and four were convicted after three trials.

Blocking the reconsideration proposal not only went against the public's expectations but would create difficulties for the agriculture and fishing industries, he said.

Government Information Office Minister Shieh Jhy-wey (謝志偉) said that the Cabinet would accept the result, but felt sorry about the vote.

"Whether or not it was the right thing is up to the public to decide," Shieh said yesterday afternoon.

He also complained that KMT Legislator Diane Lee (李慶安) voted for the proposal even though she had complained about "black gold" politics before.

"She once complained that she had been threatened by gangsters. What she has done now would seem to contradict that," Shieh said.

Additional reporting by Jimmy Chuang
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