The Parliamentary Transparency Alliance, formed by a group of “middle generation” Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers, yesterday put forward its schedule and plans for legislative reforms.
Led by KMT Legislator Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) and including lawmakers Yen Kuan-heng (顏寬恆), Wang Hui-mei (王惠美), Ma Wen-chun (馬文君) and Lee Yan-hsiu (李彥秀), the alliance announced a three-stage legislative reform agenda that aims to increase the transparency of the legislature, equip the legislature with hearing and investigative powers, and propose reforms to the electoral and constitutional systems.
For legislative transparency, which has been set as the short-term goal, the alliance called for the establishment of a “parliamentary television” system, which would live stream legislative meetings and cross-party negotiations on television and the Internet.
It said that the Legislative Yuan’s Official Gazette Office should be authorized to record the meetings and negotiations, and that a place should be arranged so that the public can “sit in” on legislative committees.
The mid-term goal would be to equip the legislature with powers to carry out investigations and hold legislative hearings, the alliance said.
A New Power Party caucus proposal on legislative investigative power — which included the ability to investigate individuals — sparked controversy as some observers believed it could allow for the excessive use of investigative power, Wang said, adding that the alliance’s proposal on investigative power is not “unrestricted or reaching down to individuals.”
The alliance said that the military police’s recent search of a civilian’s residence shows that exercising investigative power over individuals or in a way that bypasses existing systems could, if the action is carried out inappropriately, easily result in the abuse of power or human rights violations, the alliance said.
“The legislature’s investigative power should also be withdrawn when the judiciary launches its independent investigation,” Wang said.
The alliance’s long-term goal is the reform of the electoral and constitutional systems.
Making changes to the current single-district, two-vote system and to the proportion of legislators-at-large, choosing between parliamentary and presidential systems, and revising the current regulations governing the terms of Control Yuan and Examination Yuan members are all part of the plan, the alliance said, adding that public hearings would be held to gather opinions.
The three proposals for opening up the parliament have so far all been motioned, the alliance said.
In related news, Chiang said that the Legislative Yuan’s official Web site is not user-friendly enough.
“I asked on my Facebook page whether [Internet users] are familiar with the app created by the Legislative Yuan. Most of those that replied said they did not know that the app was available,” Chiang said, adding that the app allows users to view legislative agenda, legislative proceedings and gazettes.
“Another scenario was that the users of the app often failed to find the information they needed since the integration [of information] is poor,” he said.
GENSLER SURVEY: ‘Economic infrastructure is not enough. A city needs to inspire pride, offer moments of joy and foster a sense of belonging,’ the company said Taipei was named the city with the “highest staying power” in the world by US-based design and architecture firm Gensler. The Taiwanese capital earned the top spot among 65 cities across six continents with 64 percent of Taipei respondents in a survey of 33,000 people saying they wanted to stay in the city. Rounding out the top five were Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City (61 percent), Singapore (59 percent), Sydney (58 percent) and Berlin (51 percent). Sixth to 10th place went to Monterrey, Mexico; Munich, Germany; Sao Paulo, Brazil; Vancouver; and Seoul. Cities in the US were ranked separately, with Minneapolis first at
The Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association has cautioned Japanese travelers to be vigilant against pickpockets at several popular tourist spots in Taiwan, including Taipei’s night markets, the Yongkang Street area, Zhongshan MRT Station, and Jiufen (九份) in New Taipei City. The advisory, titled “Recent Development of Concerns,” was posted on the association’s Web site under its safety and emergency report section. It urges travelers to keep backpacks fully zipped and carried in front, with valuables placed at the bottom of the bag. Visitors are advised to be especially mindful of their belongings when taking photos or speaking on the phone, avoid storing wallets and
Scoot announced yesterday that starting in October, it would increase flights between Taipei and Japan’s Narita airport and Hokkaido, and between Singapore and Taipei. The low-cost airline, a subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, also said it would launch flights to Chiang Rai in Thailand, Okinawa and Tokyo’s Haneda airport between December and March next year. Flights between Singapore and Chiang Rai would begin on Jan. 1, with five flights per week operated by an Embraer E190-E2 aircraft, Scoot said. Flights between Singapore and Okinawa would begin on Dec. 15, with three flights per week operated by Airbus A320 aircraft, the airline said. Services between Singapore
ENDORSING TAIWAN: Honduran presidential candidate Nasry Afura said that Honduras was ‘100 times better off’ when it was allied with Taipei The Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it would explore the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations with Honduras based on the principle of maintaining national interests and dignity. The ministry made the remarks in response to reporters’ questions regarding an article titled: “Will Taiwan Regain a Diplomatic Ally?” published in The Diplomat on Saturday. The article said Honduras’ presidential election in November could offer Taiwan the chance to regain an ally, as multiple candidates have promoted re-establishing diplomatic relations with Taiwan. Honduras severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in March 2023 in favor of Beijing, but since switching its diplomatic recognition,
RSS