The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus, which has proposed amendments to the Assembly and Parade Law (集會遊行法), turned coy yesterday about the need to push the amendment for the time being.
Asked for comment, KMT caucus secretary-general Chang Sho-wen (張碩文) voiced his concerns about “violence” used by participants at the rally organized by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in protest against the visit of Association for the Relations Across the Taiwan Strait Chairman Chen Yunlin (陳雲林) last week.
Chang said more public deliberation was needed before the legislature could address the caucus proposal on scrapping the requirement that event organizers gain police approval before holding a rally.
Called “evil” by activists, the law, which took effect under the KMT administration in 1988, has long been regarded as an instrument used by the government to control the people and curb their right to freedom of expression.
Since then, the DPP has described the law, along with the National Security Law (國家安全法) and the Civil Organization Law (人民團體法), as a “trinity” of relics from the Martial Law era that serve the interests of those in power.
Some KMT caucus members proposed earlier this year to require that event organizers only “report” planned rallies to police rather than seek approval from law-enforcement authorities.
A similar proposal was initiated by the People First Party (PFP) caucus in 2006 during the campaign led by former DPP chairman Shih Ming-teh (施明德) to oust then-president Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).
A PFP motion in May 2006 to allow the bill to skip the legislature’s preliminary review won the support of 107 pan-blue lawmakers and was opposed to by 92 pan-green legislators during a vote.
The bill never cleared the legislative floor.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it