A referendum petition drive for a national vote on the legalization of same-sex marriage was announced by the newly founded Faith and Hope League (FHL) party yesterday.
FHL candidates and representatives of related civic groups shouted “yes” to cries of “protect family and children” as they stood behind petitions against same-sex marriage collected two years earlier.
They said they would begin collecting petitions next week to build on the existing forms and push for a referendum on changes to the legal definition of family.
Photo: CNA
“Anything that would change the definition of family should be decided by the people as a whole rather than by legislators,” league co-chairman Wang Ping-seng (王秉森) said.
“Because this is an extremely broad and complex issue, it should be decided through a national consensus,” he said.
He said that research conducted by the Ministry of Justice had found 342 articles in 109 different laws would be affected by changes to the legal definition of family.
Party members questioned the validity of polls showing that a majority of people support same-sex marriage, adding that restrictions were necessary to prevent legislators from “sneaking through” (偷渡) changes.
“Any change to the structure [of family] should be made only through the most real and authentic expression of public opinion — a government-sponsored referendum,” FHL cochairwoman Joanna Lei (雷倩) said.
The league — whose leadership is made of of people who have a background in church-related organizations — has made opposition to gay rights the focus of its campaign since it was founded earlier this year.
Chen Yi-fang (陳怡芳), a division chief with the general planning division of the Central Election Commission, said that there is no time limit for when referendum petitions submitted in the initial phase have to be collected, adding that the referendum language used on the forms should be identical with proposed language.
If the referendum question is approved, petitioners would then have six months to collect a second round of signatures equal to 5 percent of the votes in the most recent presidential election, making it “practically impossible” for the proposed referendum to be held in conjunction with the January elections, she said.
UPGRADE: The Kang Ding-class frigate is replacing its Chaparall missiles with Tien Chien II and Hua Yang VLS, which would provide it with long-range, 360° air defense Taiwan plans to produce 1,200 to 1,376 Hai Chien II missiles (海劍二, Sea Sword II) — also known as TC-2N — to serve as the standard air defense system of the navy’s surface combatant fleet, a source said yesterday. Last week, the Hai Chien II, the naval version of the Tien Kung II missile (天劍二, Sky Sword II), completed a live-fire test in waters off the National Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology’s Jiupeng facility (九鵬) in Pingtung County’s Manjhou Township (滿州). The MIM72 Chaparral and other dated air defense missiles that currently arm Taiwanese ships have inadequate range to combat Chinese
REASONS FOR TRAVEL: An assistant professor said that proposed amendments to penalize drivers if they used drugs overseas would not deter people from traveling People who operate a motor vehicle under the influence of marijuana would have their driver’s license revoked, even if they used the substance while overseas, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said yesterday, citing proposed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例). The amendments would also authorize the government to revoke the licenses of people determined to have used Category 1 or Category 2 narcotics, even if they were not operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs, as well as ban them from taking the license test for three years, the ministry said. People aged 18 or
Shih Hsin University President Chen Ching-he (陳清河) yesterday issued a public apology for comments made in his commencement speech last week, stating that he has asked the school to suspend his duties and halt his wages for two months as a show of contrition. At the commencement ceremony on May 30, Chen said, “If you don’t manage your time well, or your own emotions, or your health, then I am telling every one of you — put a quick end to ‘you,’ because the world has no need for ‘you.’” The comments have sparked significant controversy online, and Chen through an open
Johanne Liou (劉喬安), a Taiwanese woman who shot to unwanted fame during the Sunflower movement protests in 2014, returned to Taiwan last night after being deported from the US. She is to stand trial in Taiwan for charges involving embezzlement, fraud and drug crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB) said it took her into custody at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and would first question her before transferring her to the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office. She was arrested upon disembarking a flight from San Francisco that landed shortly before 7pm. Liou absconded to the US in 2019 after jumping bail
RSS