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Presidential election 2008: 15 days to go: KMT proposes resolution instead of UN referendum

The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday proposed drafting a resolution instead of holding a referendum in urging the government to apply for or regain UN membership.

KMT caucus whip Lin Yi-shih (林益世) said the resolution would be a reflection of the public's desire to join the UN and other international organizations and demand that the government take action.

Lin urged Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators to join the KMT initiative to pass the resolution, which would make it unnecessary for the government to hold referendums on the nation's UN bid.

"Joining the UN and other international organizations is a consensus shared by all Taiwanese. The DPP should support the resolution if they really care about the public," Lin told a press conference yesterday in the Legislative Yuan.

Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng (王金平) said the KMT and the DPP caucuses would need to propose the motion together if they hoped to pass the resolution before the legislature takes a break on March 17.

The resolution should be included in the Procedure Committee's agenda on Tuesday so that the legislature can decide whether the committee should review the resolution first or forward it to the full legislature for a second reading next Friday.

The legislature will take a recess from March 17 to March 21 ahead of the presidential election on March 22.

Wang warned, however, that "the [proposed] resolution and UN referendums are two different things."

"Passing the resolution doesn't necessarily mean that the referendums can be halted," Wang said.

Lin said the caucus had already invited Wang to hold cross-party negotiations to discuss the resolution immediately.
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