More than 200 people protested in front of the Legislative Yuan in Taipei yesterday morning against the question proposed by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators for a referendum to decide the fate of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant in New Taipei City’s (新北市) Gongliao District (貢寮).
Chanting “pro-nuclear legislators are distorting the referendum, conforming to the political party and acting against the public will” and “holding a bird-cage referendum is fake democracy,” the protesters tied yellow ribbons that read “Terminate the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant and reject dangerous nuclear power” on the fence of the Legislative Yuan.
A referendum proposal, co-sponsored by 32 KMT lawmakers and led by Lee Ching-hua (李慶華), framed the question as “Do you agree that the construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant should be halted and that it not become operational (你是否同意核四廠停止興建不得運轉)?”
Photo: CNA
“The referendum question should be phrased to reflect the stance of those who posed it, meaning that since the KMT and the Cabinet are in support of the construction, the question should be ‘do you agree to continue the nuclear plant construction project?’” Green Citizen Action Alliance deputy secretary-general Hung Shen-han (洪申翰) said.
“The referendum should be held for the public to verify the government’s policy, but now it is using the opposing side’s opinion of ‘halting the construction’ as a question for referendum, which is violating the principle of responsible politics,” he added.
Among the protesters were film directors Wang Shau-di (王小棣), Cheng Yu-chieh (鄭有傑) and Ko I-Chen (柯一正).
Wang said she did not trust the government because it did badly on basic issues and that “the government did not even do a good job ensuring the basic safety of the nuclear power plants and spent nuclear fuel, nor did it answered to the public on these basic issues.”
“The government never communicated with the public and has no direction for the future,” she added.
Handing out papers with pro-nuclear legislators’ office phone numbers on them and urging the public to call them to voice their anger, the protesters urged the legislators not to obey the political party’s orders, but to listen to the public.
Chinese spouse and influencer Guan Guan’s (關關) residency permit has been revoked for repeatedly posting pro-China videos that threaten national security, the National Immigration Agency confirmed today. Guan Guan has said many controversial statements in her videos posted to Douyin (抖音), including “the red flag will soon be painted all over Taiwan” and “Taiwan is an inseparable part of China,” and expressing hope for expedited reunification. The agency last year received multiple reports alleging that Guan Guan had advocated for armed reunification. After verifying the reports, the agency last month issued a notice requiring her to appear and explain her actions. Guan
A preclearance service to facilitate entry for people traveling to select airports in Japan would be available from Thursday next week to Feb. 25 at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, Taoyuan International Airport Corp (TIAC) said on Tuesday. The service was first made available to Taiwanese travelers throughout the winter vacation of 2024 and during the Lunar New Year holiday. In addition to flights to the Japanese cities of Hakodate, Asahikawa, Akita, Sendai, Niigata, Okayama, Takamatsu, Kumamoto and Kagoshima, the service would be available to travelers to Kobe and Oita. The service can be accessed by passengers of 15 flight routes operated by
GIVE AND TAKE: Blood demand continues to rise each year, while fewer young donors are available due to the nation’s falling birthrate, a doctor said Blood donors can redeem points earned from donations to obtain limited edition Formosan black bear travel mugs, the Kaohsiung Blood Center said yesterday, as it announced a goal of stocking 20,000 units of blood prior to the Lunar New Year. The last month of the lunar year is National Blood Donation Month, when local centers seek to stockpile blood for use during the Lunar New Year holiday. The blood demand in southern Taiwan — including Tainan and Kaohsiung, as well as Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Taitung counties — is about 2,000 units per day, the center said. The donation campaign aims to boost
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a magnitude 4.9 earthquake that struck off the coast of eastern Taiwan yesterday was an independent event and part of a stress-adjustment process. The earthquake occurred at 4:47pm, with its epicenter at sea about 45.4km south of Yilan County Hall at a depth of 5.9km, the CWA said. The quake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in several townships in Yilan and neighboring Hualien County, where it measured 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the CWA said. Lin Po-yu (林柏佑), a division chief at the CWA's Seismological Center, told a news conference
RSS