The meeting between President Chen Shui-bian (
The bill was blocked from being put on the legislative agenda for deliberation because of objections from the KMT and People First Party (PFP), which between them dominate the legislature's Procedure Committee.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Tsai Chi-fang (
PHOTO: SUNG CHIH-HSIUNG, TAIPEI TIMES
Ma shouldn't allow the KMT to continue blocking the bill in the legislature, Tsai said.
"Would you please advise Ma in the KMT's Central Standing Committee that he should not make empty promises," Tsai told the KMT legislators.
Pan-blue legislators yesterday also rejected a bill to review the president's nominations for the Control Yuan, which has been blocked since Feb. 1 last year.
PHOTO: LIAO CHEN-HUEI, TAIPEI TIMES
After a meeting between Ma and PFP Chairman James Soong (
Commission candidates are named by political parties in proportion to their number of seats in the Legislative Yuan.
While the pan-blue camp yesterday also shot down other bills that had been initiated by the pan-green camp, the Procedure Committee did pass the bill to amend the March 19 Shooting Truth Investigation Special Committee Statute (三一九槍擊事件真相調查特別委員會條例) with the aim of reestablishing the committee.
The amendment was approved for its second and third reading in the legislature next Tuesday.
Although bills are usually only tabled in the legislature when there is consensus among all legislative caucuses, the amendment was sent to the legislature despite failing to gain the support of the Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU).
TSU Legislator Ho Min-hao (
KMT caucus whip Tseng Yung-chuan (
In other developments, a pan-blue proposal to repeal the government's reform plans for the preferential 18 percent interest-rate scheme for retired teachers and civil servants was also passed for discussion next Tuesday.
NATIONAL SECURITY: Authorities are working to confirm the identities of the military personnel involved and investigating possible illegal conduct and regulatory violations Authorities are probing possible national security implications after Kinmen police and immigration officers on Sunday found a Chinese woman allegedly posing as a tourist while engaging in prostitution involving more than 10 military personnel. The woman, surnamed Chen (陳), has since been deported, authorities said, adding that investigators are still working to confirm the identities of those implicated, as the records only listed code names and aliases. The case stemmed from a report received by the Kinmen District Prosecutors’ Office on Friday last week from the Jinhu Precinct of the Kinmen County Police Bureau. On Sunday, police, along with the National Immigration
GLOBALGIVING: ‘ Caving to external pressure is not acceptable for an organization that has cultivated justice reform and human rights for 30 years,’ one NGO said A slew of non-government organizations (NGOs) have withdrawn from the GlobalGiving fundraising platform after it announced it would use “Chinese Taipei” instead of “Taiwan” from next month. The Taiwan Good Rice Association wrote on Facebook on Friday that it was informed on April 28 via a teleconference call of the change, which was made because the platform wanted to operate in China. Taiwan Good Rice is to terminate all cooperative relationships with GlobalGiving in response to the platform’s “unilateral and non-negotiable” decision to remove references to Taiwan, the NGO said. “Taiwan is in the official name of Taiwan Good Rice Association and the
STAY COOL: The HPA recommended that people stay hydrated, use air-conditioning or fans while indoors, wear loose-fitting clothes and walk in the shade while outdoors Employers must implement measures such as installing cooling equipment, and providing drinking water and rest breaks for outdoor workers starting from Monday next week, the Taipei Department of Labor said on Sunday. Employers who fail to comply could face fines of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (職業安全衛生法), the department said. Businesses in Taipei employing fewer than 100 workers, as well as registered self-employed workers with labor insurance coverage, could receive on-site assessments and guidance from occupational safety consultants to help them apply for central government subsidies to implement or improve heat-protection measures, it said. Under the Ministry of
HEAVY WEATHER: Typhoon Jangmi is due to crash straight into the Ryukyus as airlines look to shift flights to larger aircraft or cancel flights to Okinawa entirely Taiwan’s international air carriers announced flight adjustments over the weekend as Typhoon Jangmi is forecast to hit the Ryukyu Islands today and tomorrow. The Central Weather Administration (CWA) upgraded Jangmi from a tropical storm to a typhoon at 8am yesterday, with the eye located 580km south of Naha city. It was moving north at 19kph. Today, China Airlines’ CI-120, CI-121, CI-122 and CI-123 flights between Taoyuan and Naha, Okinawa, have been canceled as well as CI-132 and CI-133 between Kaohsiung and Naha. EVA Air’s BR-112, BR-113, BR-186 and BR-185 flights between Taoyuan and Naha are also canceled. Low-cost carrier Tigerair Taiwan canceled IT-230,
RSS