After lengthy wheeling and dealing, the legislature yesterday wrapped up review of the 2002 fiscal budget without barring the foreign ministry from printing the words "Issued in Taiwan'' on new passport covers.
The lawmaking body passed the government budget by paring NT$12 billion, or 0.7 percent, from the projected spending of NT$1.58 trillion for this year.
But opposition lawmakers agreed to tone down the language of a resolution that bans the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from altering the country's title shown on passports.
PHOTO: AFP
They noted that the upcoming addition of the English phrase "Issued in Taiwan" would not flout the resolution.
"Since the phrase will not appear right under or after the country's title, it will not cause confusion as we had warned," People First Party legislative leader Chou Hsi-wei (
A week ago, President Chen Shui-bian (
The announcement drew protest from the opposition alliance whose lawmakers had vowed to attach a rider to the budget bill barring the foreign ministry from amending the passport covers.
Going a step further, New Party legislator Elmer Fung (
Compromise came after the ministry agreed to add the English phrase "Issued in Taiwan" rather than "Taiwan" alone in Roman script to the new passport covers.
In a conciliatory gesture, the opposition-controlled legislature pared only NT$35 million from the ministry's funding.
The passage of the 2002 budget marked the end of the Fourth Legislature with newly elected lawmakers slated to take their oaths of office on Feb. 1.
Though the legislators approved a NT$16 billion fund aimed at providing senior citizens with a monthly allowance, they attached a clause requiring enactment of a welfare law before the money may be distributed.
The restriction emerged as a policy setback to the DPP government that has sought unsuccessfully for a second year to honor a key promise Chen made during his 2000 presidential campaign.
DPP legislative whip Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯) said he was pessimistic the allowance would ever be distributed, noting that the ruling party lacks the majority needed to give the fund a legal basis.
Still, during a dinner party with Cabinet officials, the president expressed satisfaction at the high number of bills passed.
He thanked all government agencies for putting in sustained efforts over the last months to push for passage of important legislation.
The legislative session, which concluded at 8pm, witnessed more than 170 bills made into law, despite its being shortened by one month before the legislative polls. A total of 112 lawmakers have vacated their offices or are preparing to do so, including those who have been sworn in as county commissioners or city mayors.
Though the budgetary cut came as the lowest in 10 years, the Cabinet-level Council for Cultural Affairs issued a statement in the evening, saying it regretted the removal of NT$500 million from its projected spending.
Chen Yu-chiou (
She said the council would strive to maintain its quality of performance with the slashed budget.
By contrast, proposals to slash honorary benefits for former president Lee Teng-hui (
Due to time constraints, a number of high-profile bills, notably the proposals to establish a financial supervisory board and provide monetary compensation for former soldiers, did not make it to second and third readings.
See Editorial
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday said it is expected to issue a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong this afternoon and a land warning tomorrow. As of 1pm, the storm was about 1,070km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, and was moving west-northwest at 28 to 32kph, according to CWA data. The storm had a radius of 250km, with maximum sustained winds of 173kph and gusts reaching 209kph, the CWA added. The storm is forecast to pass near Luzon in the Philippines before entering the South China Sea and potentially turning northward toward Taiwan, the CWA said. CWA forecaster Chang Chun-yao (張峻堯) said
PREPARATION: Ferry lines and flights were canceled ahead of only the second storm to hit the nation in November, while many areas canceled classes and work Authorities yesterday evacuated more than 3,000 people ahead of approaching Tropical Storm Fung-wong, which is expected to make landfall between Kaohsiung and Pingtung County this evening. Fung-wong was yesterday morning downgraded from a typhoon to a tropical storm as it approached the nation’s southwest coast, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, as it issued a land alert for the storm. The alert applies to residents in Tainan, Kaohsiung, Pingtung and Taitung counties, and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春). As of press time last night, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and Yilan, Miaoli, Changhua, Yunlin, Pingtung and Penghu counties, as well as Chiayi city and county had
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) yesterday issued a sea alert for Typhoon Fung-wong (鳳凰) as it threatened vessels operating in waters off the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島), the Bashi Channel and south of the Taiwan Strait. A land alert is expected to be announced some time between late last night and early this morning, the CWA said. As of press time last night, Taoyuan, as well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties had declared today a typhoon day, canceling work and classes. Except for a few select districts in Taipei and New Taipei City, all other areas and city
VIOLATION OF NORMS: China’s CCTV broadcast claimed that Beijing could use Interpol to issue arrest warrants, which the MAC slammed as an affront to order The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday condemned the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for attempts to intimidate Taiwanese through “transnational repression.” The council issued the remarks after state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) yesterday during a news broadcast aired a video targeting Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋), threatening him with “cross-border repression” and saying: “Stop now, or you will be next,” in what Taipei officials said was an attempt to intimidate not only Shen, but also the broader Taiwanese public. The MAC in a statement condemned the threat, accusing Beijing of trying to instill fear and self-censorship among Taiwanese and
RSS