A petition calling for a referendum on forcing the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) to return stolen assets to the national coffers will be sent to the government for review, as 83,000 signatures have been collected, making it a formal petition.
"If the petition is approved, we have to collect 830,000 signatures within six months to call a referendum," Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chai Trong-rong (蔡同榮) said at a press conference yesterday.
The DPP lawmakers said they hoped the referendum could be held during the next legislative election in December next year.
PHOTO: SEAN CHAO, TAIPEI TIMES
Collecting signatures to call for the referendum is aimed at keeping the KMT from avoiding its obligation to return its assets to the nation and the people, Tsai said.
Considering that it took more than two months for DPP lawmakers to collect the first-stage 83,000 signatures, Tsai said it would not be easy to collect 10 times that number within the six-month time limit.
The KMT is scheduled to issue a report today on how the party has handled its assets. The KMT's rivals describe the assets -- which were acquired from the Japanese colonial government and private businesses and individuals when the KMT took control of Taiwan in 1945 -- as "stolen."
DPP Legislator Yen Wen-chung (
Yen said he suspected that the intention behind Ma's decision to issue a report on the party's assets was, "firstly, to shift responsibility for its shrinking assets to former chairman Lee Teng-hui (
also see story:
Assets report just a Ma makeover
China has reserved offshore airspace in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea from March 27 to May 6, issuing alerts usually used to warn of military exercises, although no such exercises have been announced, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported yesterday. Reserving such a large area for 40 days without explanation is an “unusual step,” as military exercises normally only last a few days, the paper said. These alerts, known as Notice to Air Missions (Notams), “are intended to inform pilots and aviation authorities of temporary airspace hazards or restrictions,” the article said. The airspace reserved in the alert is
NAMING SPAT: The foreign ministry called on Denmark to propose an acceptable solution to the erroneous nationality used for Taiwanese on residence permits Taiwan has revoked some privileges for Danish diplomatic staff over a Danish permit that lists “Taiwan” as “China,” Eric Huang (黃鈞耀), head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of European Affairs, told a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Reporters asked Huang whether the Danish government had responded to the ministry’s request that it correct the nationality on Danish residence permits of Taiwanese, which has been listed as “China” since 2024. Taiwan’s representative office in Denmark continues to communicate with the Danish government, and the ministry has revoked some privileges previously granted to Danish representatives in Taiwan and would continue to review
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
China has reserved offshore airspace over the Yellow Sea and East China Sea from March 27 to May 6, issuing alerts that are usually used to warn of military exercises, although no such exercises have been announced, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Sunday. Reserving such a large area for 40 days without explanation is an “unusual step,” as military exercises normally only last a few days, the paper said. The alerts, known as notice to air missions (NOTAMs), “are intended to inform pilots and aviation authorities of temporary airspace hazards or restrictions,” the article said. The airspace reserved in the alert
RSS