Taiwanese might soon be able to vote in referendums from anywhere within the country after the Executive Yuan yesterday approved a bill that would allow ballots to be cast away from home districts.
The new rules, which have been sent to the Legislative Yuan for deliberation, will not apply to the referendums on Dec. 18 or for people outside of Taiwan.
It is inconvenient and expensive for many people who work or study away from their registered district to travel there to cast a ballot, which affects their right to vote, the Central Election Commission (CEC) said of the need for absentee voting.
Eligible voters would be allowed to “transfer” their ballot to a polling location in another district, while those in remote areas or outlying islands could vote from elsewhere within their city or county, the proposed rules say.
However, people must apply at least 60 days in advance with their local CEC office for approval to vote in such fashion to allow time to prepare voter rolls, the bill says.
An estimated 2 million people nationwide would be affected by the changes, CEC Chairman Lee Chin-yung (李進勇) said, adding that there was not enough time to implement the new rules by December, but hopefully they can be promulgated by 2023.
In early 2018, Article 25 of the Referendum Act (公民投票法) was amended to allow absentee voting in referendums, which required a separate law to be drafted to prescribe the procedure.
Absentee voting in referendums has been discussed for many years, but there has been disagreement on how it should be implemented, the CEC said.
With the understanding that voting should be protected from outside interference to ensure reliable results, the community has agreed on a gradual and progressive approach, it said.
Instead of other common methods of absentee voting, such as mail-in ballots, electronic voting and voting by proxy, the commission said it decided on a “vote transfer” approach, as it still allows people to vote in person on the day of a referendum.
If the system works well, it might inform potential absentee voting procedures for regular elections, the CEC said.
FIREPOWER: On top of the torpedoes, the military would procure Kestrel II anti-tank weapons systems to replace aging license-produced M72 LAW launchers Taiwan is to receive US-made Mark 48 torpedoes and training simulators over the next three years, following delays that hampered the navy’s operational readiness, the Ministry of National Defense’s latest budget proposal showed. The navy next year would acquire four training simulator systems for the torpedoes and take receipt of 14 torpedoes in 2027 and 10 torpedoes in 2028, the ministry said in its budget for the next fiscal year. The torpedoes would almost certainly be utilized in the navy’s two upgraded Chien Lung-class submarines and the indigenously developed Hai Kun, should the attack sub successfully reach operational status. US President Donald Trump
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is expected to start construction of its 1.4-nanometer chip manufacturing facilities at the Central Taiwan Science Park (CTSP, 中部科學園區) as early as October, the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister newspaper) reported yesterday, citing the park administration. TSMC acquired land for the second phase of the park’s expansion in Taichung in June. Large cement, construction and facility engineering companies in central Taiwan have reportedly been receiving bids for TSMC-related projects, the report said. Supply-chain firms estimated that the business opportunities for engineering, equipment and materials supply, and back-end packaging and testing could reach as high as
ALL QUIET: The Philippine foreign secretary told senators she would not respond to questions about whether Lin Chia-lung was in the country The Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday confirmed that a business delegation is visiting the Philippines, but declined to say whether Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) is part of the group, as Philippine lawmakers raised questions over Lin’s reported visit. The group is being led by Deputy Minister of Agriculture Huang Chao-chin (黃昭欽), Chinese International Economic Cooperation Association (CIECA) chairman Joseph Lyu (呂桔誠) and US-Taiwan Business Council (USTBC) vice president Lotta Danielsson, the ministry said in a statement. However, sources speaking on condition of anonymity said that Lin is leading the delegation of 70 people. Filinvest New Clark City Innovation Park
TPP RALLY: The clashes occurred near the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall on Saturday at a rally to mark the anniversary of a raid on former TPP chairman Ko Wen-je People who clashed with police at a Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) rally in Taipei on Saturday would be referred to prosecutors for investigation, said the Ministry of the Interior, which oversees the National Police Agency. Taipei police had collected evidence of obstruction of public officials and coercion by “disorderly” demonstrators, as well as contraventions of the Assembly and Parade Act (集會遊行法), the ministry said in a statement on Sunday. It added that amid the “severe pushing and jostling” by some demonstrators, eight police officers were injured, including one who was sent to hospital after losing consciousness, allegedly due to heat stroke. The Taipei
RSS