The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the People First Party (PFP) caucuses yesterday said that they would request a constitutional interpretation over the legality of the Anti-infiltration Act (反滲透法), which passed a third reading yesterday.
The KMT caucus had said before a legislative meeting that it would file for a constitutional interpretation if the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) pushed the bill through.
Following the passage of the bill, KMT caucus whip William Tseng (曾銘宗) presented a petition signed by 39 lawmakers that were opposed to the act, and told reporters outside the legislative chamber that the KMT and the PFP would request that the Council of Grand Justices pass down a constitutional interpretation once President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) ratifies it.
The petition was signed by 35 KMT legislators, three PFP legislators and Non-Partisan Solidarity Union Legislator May Chin (高金素梅).
The DPP has abused its legislative majority to force through the bill, Tseng said.
The KMT caucus would have supported the bill if it had truly aimed at bolstering national security and improving social security, but its timing has shown that it was passed with the presidential and legislative elections on Saturday next week’s in mind, he said.
PFP Legislator Chen Yi-chieh (陳怡潔) said that the PFP would request a constitutional interpretation, as it believes that the act would affect many Taiwanese businesspeople and students in China.
DPP caucus secretary-general Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) said that he respected the pan-blue camp’s decision to file for a constitutional interpretation, but that he “did not see why it [the act] was unconstitutional.”
The act targets people who infiltrate the nation or carry out actions that harm the nation’s democracy on behalf of an infiltration source, so law-abiding Taiwanese businesspeople and students would not be affected, he said.
DPP caucus director-general Kuan Bi-ling (管碧玲) said that the caucus had kept a low profile when discussing the bill for fear that opposition parties might hold “hostage” an already passed special budget of NT$250 billion (US$8.3 billion) for the procurement of 66 F-16 jets, the Act on the Procurement of Updated Fighter Jets (新式戰機採購條例) and the general budget if the anti-infiltration bill had been exposed.
This resulted in the caucus being smeared, with critics saying that the bill was designed to boost the DPP’s election prospects, Kuan said.
Now that the act has been passed, it would serve as a “strong shield” for Taiwanese working or studying in China, who can cite it to decline any unreasonable requests in an attempt to infiltrate the nation, she said.
Kuan urged Beijing to engage with the world in a respectful, civilized manner rather than resorting to infiltration and domination.
Additional reporting by CNA and Hsieh Chun-lin
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