A bill that calls for direct links with China made advancement in the legislature yesterday though it has no chance of materializing unless Beijing agrees to sit at the negotiation table.
The legislature voted 100 to 90 in favor of sending the legislation to the Home and Nations Committee for review, thanks to a joint push by the opposition KMT and PFP over the protest of the "pan-green" alliance.
The bill, sponsored by KMT lawmaker John Chang (章孝嚴), would allow Taiwanese and Chinese boats and aircraft to travel directly between the two countries. Under existing rules, such trips are not allowed.
Chang, chairman of the committee, has argued it is in Taiwan's interest to remove legal obstacles to direct transport across the Strait, noting that exports to China account for the bulk of the country's foreign trade.
"Regulated properly, such links will not pose any harm to the nation's security," he insists.
The committee where the opposition camp enjoys superiority is expected to take up the proposed revisions to statutes governing cross-strait exchanges next week.
If passed by the legislature, the bill would require the government to disclose the details of how it intends to implement the policy within six months.
Proponents have vowed to push it through before the end of the session on June 21.
Aware of the stalemate across the Strait, the legislation proposes allowing private citizens and organizations to negotiate with their Chinese counterparts over issues that are not connected with politics.
Despite the setback, the ruling DPP drew solace from the fact that direct links may not materialize without Beijing's approval.
"It takes two to tango," DPP legislative whip Wang Tuoh (王拓) said. "It made no difference whether the legislature would give its go-ahead to the bill."
He added that President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) meant to break the cross-strait deadlock when he portrayed direct links as "inevitable" earlier this month.
In a recent trip to Kinmen, the president said that direct links -- trade, transport, and mail between Taiwan and China -- are an irresistible trend.
He invited Chinese leaders to Taiwan for a chat and suggested sending private groups there to promote bilateral ties.
The statements won applause from the industrialists among them Wang Yung-ching (
Saying that direct links will harm Taiwan's security and economy, the TSU has opposed full-fledged contacts with China.
TSU lawmaker Chen Chien-ming (
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