The Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU) yesterday lashed out at the government over its “five lines of defense” in cross-strait trade negotiations, saying that the government was obviously not prepared before talks on the cross-strait trade in goods agreement.
After facing public criticism and protests over its handling of the cross-strait service trade agreement, Industrial Development Bureau Director-General Wu Ming-ji (吳明機) said last week that future cross-strait talks would follow “five lines of defense”: negotiating well, assisting domestic businesses, trade remedy, readjusting the industrial structure and compensating workers.
“I don’t understand how ‘negotiating well’ made it to that list. Isn’t it something all negotiators should have in mind before getting into negotiations?” TSU Policy Committee chairman Hsu Chung-hsin (許忠信) said during a press conference at the legislature.
Photo: Lo Pei-der, Taipei Times
“Other points, including assisting domestic businesses, readjusting the industrial structure and compensating workers, are things that the government should have worked on before starting cross-strait trade negotiations. The government is obviously not well prepared before starting to negotiate,” Hsu said.
Hsu said that “trade remedy” is the only true “line of defense” on the negotiation table, because it is something that the government should strive for during cross-strait trade talks.
TSU caucus whip Yeh Chin-ling (葉津鈴) said that compensation and subsidy plans should be drawn up prior to completing the talks on the cross-strait trade in goods agreement.
“If the agreement is passed, Chinese goods will enter the Taiwanese market in overwhelming volumes. It will be too late to think about compensation and subsidies then,” she said.
Separately yesterday, Minister of Economic Affairs Woody Duh (杜紫軍), after coming under fire from lawmakers, promised during a legislative meeting that the ministry would announce the venue for future cross-strait trade talks, saying that the location of recent discussions was kept secret out of concern that it would be surrounded by protesters.
Duh also promised to report to the legislature each time after the negotiation teams met.
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