The People First Party (PFP) caucus yesterday declared that it would not allow the statute governing the arms deal with the US to pass the Procedure Committee next week.
"If the US doesn't recognize the Republic of China (ROC) as a sovereign state, we should not buy the weapons," PFP caucus whip Liu Wen-hsiung (劉文雄) said.
At Tuesday's Procedure Committee meeting, the PFP, with the support of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT), boycotted the statute in response to US Secretary of State Colin Powell's statement that "Taiwan is not a sovereign state."
The PFP's declaration poses a major threat to Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng's (王金平) call to send the statute to committee review before the legislative elections.
If the statute does not pass the Procedure Committee next week, the next opportunity will be on Nov. 9. If the statute is passed on Nov. 9, there would not be enough time for it to get a first reading and be officially delivered to the related committees for review before the current legislative session is suspended on Nov. 10. The statute then will have to wait at least until Dec. 14 to get its first reading.
The KMT caucus yesterday remained ambiguous about whether it would support the PFP again in the committee, although it has sided with the PFP over the past few weeks to block the statute's passage by the committee.
"We haven't decided what to do next week yet," KMT caucus whip Huang Teh-fu (
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus, meanwhile, expressed disappointment with the PFP's attitude and said that the pan-blue hardliners were using Powell's statement as an excuse.
"The pan-blue camp is using Powell's remarks as an excuse to prevent the statute from being passed for review. But this may actually be Wang trying to shift his responsibility," DPP caucus whip Lee Chun-yee (
"Wang originally promised to help deliver the statute for review on time, but now he cannot be certain of that. This should have nothing to do with Powell's remarks. Instead, this is about the pan-blue hardliners rising again," Lee said.
Wang denied Lee's claim.
"It is the Procedure Committee, not me, which is in charge of arranging the bills for readings in the legislative sitting," he said.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
UNKNOWN TRAJECTORY: The storm could move in four possible directions, with the fourth option considered the most threatening to Taiwan, meteorologist Lin De-en said A soon-to-be-formed tropical storm east of the Philippines could begin affecting Taiwan on Wednesday next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The storm, to be named Fung-wong (鳳凰), is forecast to approach Taiwan on Tuesday next week and could begin affecting the weather in Taiwan on Wednesday, CWA forecaster Huang En-hung (黃恩鴻) said, adding that its impact might be amplified by the combined effect with the northeast monsoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the system’s center was 2,800km southeast of Oluanbi (鵝鑾鼻). It was moving northwest at 18kph. Meteorologist Lin De-en (林得恩) on Facebook yesterday wrote that the would-be storm is surrounded by
RSS