With the National Assembly set to convene an extraordinary session next Tuesday to pass constitutional amendments aimed at curtailing its own powers, officials from the DPP, KMT and New Party have reportedly reached a consensus on how to marginalize the institution.
As assembly elections are set to take place on May 6, the special session will be called to discuss the future of the assembly.
Chen Chin-teh (
Chen said the KMT and DPP have agreed to the New Party's proposals that any changes to the ROC's national territory should still be reviewed by the assembly. They also agreed that issues involving internal rebellion and treason would no longer be the only conditions for impeaching the president or vice president, as is now the case.
Chen said the three parties will meet today to finalize a joint amendment proposal.
In related news, Legislator Chou Hsi-wei (周錫瑋) yesterday asked the acting chairman of the Central Election Commission (CEC, 中選會), Huang Shih-cheng (黃石城), if the assembly elections could still be held as scheduled if the special convention votes to abolish the institution or to freeze its powers.
Huang said the CEC declared last month that the registration period for the election would run from April 9 to 13 and the campaign period would begin April 26.
Huang said the CEC would terminate the election if the Constitution is amended to marginalize or abolish the assembly before the election.
Huang added those who registered to run in the election may ask for government compensation if the election is terminated.
The election became necessary after the Council of Grand Justices announced last month that a controversial set of amendments passed by the assembly last year -- including extending its own term by two years -- was unconstitutional.
The Philippines is working behind the scenes to enhance its defensive cooperation with Taiwan, the Washington Post said in a report published on Monday. “It would be hiding from the obvious to say that Taiwan’s security will not affect us,” Philippine Secretary of National Defense Gilbert Teodoro Jr told the paper in an interview on Thursday last week. Although there has been no formal change to the Philippines’ diplomatic stance on recognizing Taiwan, Manila is increasingly concerned about Chinese encroachment in the South China Sea, the report said. The number of Chinese vessels in the seas around the Philippines, as well as Chinese
NEXT GENERATION: The four plants in the Central Taiwan Science Park, designated Fab 25, would consist of four 1.4-nanometer wafer manufacturing plants, TSMC said Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) plans to begin construction of four new plants later this year, with the aim to officially launch production of 2-nanometer semiconductor wafers by late 2028, Central Taiwan Science Park Bureau director-general Hsu Maw-shin (許茂新) said. Hsu made the announcement at an event on Friday evening celebrating the Central Taiwan Science Park’s 22nd anniversary. The second phase of the park’s expansion would commence with the initial construction of water detention ponds and other structures aimed at soil and water conservation, Hsu said. TSMC has officially leased the land, with the Central Taiwan Science Park having handed over the
URBAN COMBAT: FIM-92 Stinger shoulder-fired missiles from the US made a rare public appearance during early-morning drills simulating an invasion of the Taipei MRT The ongoing Han Kuang military exercises entered their sixth day yesterday, simulating repelling enemy landings in Penghu County, setting up fortifications in Tainan, laying mines in waters in Kaohsiung and conducting urban combat drills in Taipei. At 5am in Penghu — part of the exercise’s first combat zone — participating units responded to a simulated rapid enemy landing on beaches, combining infantry as well as armored personnel. First Combat Zone Commander Chen Chun-yuan (陳俊源) led the combined armed troops utilizing a variety of weapons systems. Wang Keng-sheng (王鏗勝), the commander in charge of the Penghu Defense Command’s mechanized battalion, said he would give
‘REALISTIC’ APPROACH: The ministry said all the exercises were scenario-based and unscripted to better prepare personnel for real threats and unexpected developments The army’s 21st Artillery Command conducted a short-range air defense drill in Taoyuan yesterday as part of the Han Kuang exercises, using the indigenous Sky Sword II (陸射劍二) missile system for the first time in the exercises. The armed forces have been conducting a series of live-fire and defense drills across multiple regions, simulating responses to a full-scale assault by Chinese forces, the Ministry of National Defense said. The Sky Sword II missile system was rapidly deployed and combat-ready within 15 minutes to defend Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in a simulated attack, the ministry said. A three-person crew completed setup and
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