President Ma Ying-jeou’s (馬英九) administration welcomes a debate with opposition leaders on a controversial cross-strait service trade pact with China that has sparked student-led protests and the occupation of government buildings, Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) said yesterday.
Speaking at a press conference, Jiang said he, Ma and Vice President Wu Den-yih (吳敦義) are open to debating the agreement with Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Chairman Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) and former DPP chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), or other key opposition figures.
Asked whether debates would help ease public misgivings and break the standoff, Jiang said the government has never ruled out having a debate to expose the pros and cons of the pact and promote an exchange of ideas among political parties and different sectors of society.
Student-led protesters stormed the legislative chamber late on March 18 to block legislative approval of the pact, after Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Chang Ching-chung (張慶忠) suddenly announced a day earlier that the agreement had passed the committee review stage and would be moved to the legislative plenary session for a vote.
The protesters have been camped out there since then, insisting they will not leave until their demands are met. Protesters occupying the Legislative Yuan have demanded a “civic constitutional meeting,” but Jiang yesterday said he had never heard of the term and was unsure of the nature of such a meeting.
Jiang said the student protesters have been making daily demands for six days, some of which have been later adjusted. He also added that he was not sure whether there have been calls for his resignation.
According to Jiang, administrative staff have been keeping up-to-date with the students’ demands daily.
He said that if the “civic constitutional meeting” is to be about sending back or reviewing the agreement with China, then he “does not fear any scrutiny,” adding that he would be willing to talk about every article in the pact.
Regarding constitutional issues, however, Jiang stated that they are separate topics and that during the past few days of demonstrations, he has yet to hear any requests in that regard.
Jiang said that the government has held national meetings before and knows how to convene similar conferences.
He said that a “civic constitutional meeting” would have to follow a similar procedure to the one used for the National Development Conference, which usually requires a few months of preparation.
PRAISE: Japanese visitor Takashi Kubota said the Taiwanese temple architecture images showcased in the AI Art Gallery were the most impressive displays he saw Taiwan does not have an official pavilion at the World Expo in Osaka, Japan, because of its diplomatic predicament, but the government-backed Tech World pavilion is drawing interest with its unique recreations of works by Taiwanese artists. The pavilion features an artificial intelligence (AI)-based art gallery showcasing works of famous Taiwanese artists from the Japanese colonial period using innovative technologies. Among its main simulated displays are Eastern gouache paintings by Chen Chin (陳進), Lin Yu-shan (林玉山) and Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖), who were the three young Taiwanese painters selected for the East Asian Painting exhibition in 1927. Gouache is a water-based
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake struck eastern Taiwan's Hualien County at 2:23pm today, according to the Central Weather Administration (CWA). The epicenter of the temblor was 5.4 kilometers northeast of Hualien County Hall, at a depth of 34.9 km, according to the CWA. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effect of a temblor, was the highest in Hualien County, where it measured 2 on Taiwan's 7-tier intensity scale. The quake also measured an intensity of 1 in Yilan county, Taichung, Nantou County, Changhua County and Yunlin County, the CWA said. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
‘WORSE THAN COMMUNISTS’: President William Lai has cracked down on his political enemies and has attempted to exterminate all opposition forces, the chairman said The legislature would motion for a presidential recall after May 20, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday at a protest themed “against green communists and dictatorship” in Taipei. Taiwan is supposed to be a peaceful homeland where people are united, but President William Lai (賴清德) has been polarizing and tearing apart society since his inauguration, Chu said. Lai must show his commitment to his job, otherwise a referendum could be initiated to recall him, he said. Democracy means the rule of the people, not the rule of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), but Lai has failed to fulfill his
OFF-TARGET: More than 30,000 participants were expected to take part in the Games next month, but only 6,550 foreign and 19,400 Taiwanese athletes have registered Taipei city councilors yesterday blasted the organizers of next month’s World Masters Games over sudden timetable and venue changes, which they said have caused thousands of participants to back out of the international sporting event, among other organizational issues. They also cited visa delays and political interference by China as reasons many foreign athletes are requesting refunds for the event, to be held from May 17 to 30. Jointly organized by the Taipei and New Taipei City governments, the games have been rocked by numerous controversies since preparations began in 2020. Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) said yesterday that new measures by
RSS