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.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
A total lunar eclipse, an astronomical event often referred to as a “blood moon,” would be visible to sky watchers in Taiwan starting just before midnight on Sunday night, the Taipei Astronomical Museum said. The phenomenon is also called “blood moon” due to the reddish-orange hue it takes on as the Earth passes directly between the sun and the moon, completely blocking direct sunlight from reaching the lunar surface. The only light is refracted by the Earth’s atmosphere, and its red wavelengths are bent toward the moon, illuminating it in a dramatic crimson light. Describing the event as the most important astronomical phenomenon
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
RSS