The government's decision to reject Beijing's proposed route for next year's Olympic torch relay was the subject of heated debate in the legislature yesterday.
While the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus threw its full support behind the government's decision to reject a proposal that the torch enter Taiwan from Vietnam and leave for Hong Kong, the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus condemned the government's move as ideologically motivated.
"Although we would welcome the torch to Taiwan, we cannot accept a route that belittles Taiwan's status," DPP Legislator William Lai (賴清德) told a press conference, condemning China for "politicizing sports events."
DPP Legislator Gao Jyh-peng (
"Even if we accept the plan, the arrival of the torch will not be able to appease the anger of Taiwanese people [toward China's plan]," DPP Legislator Huang Wei-cher (黃偉哲) said, adding that former KMT chairman Lien Chan (連戰), who is now visiting China, should show "guts" by negotiating with the Chinese on the matter to "show Taiwan's sovereignty and status during the relay."
KMT legislators, on the other hand, lashed out at the DPP's rejection of the torch route.
During the legislative national affairs forum -- a period for legislators to talk about any topic they like -- KMT Legislator Huang Chih-hsiung (
When answering questions from the media later, Huang said the Council on Physical Fitness and Sports (CPFS) and the Chinese Taipei Olympic Committee (CTOC) had been fighting for the opportunity to include Taiwan in the torch relay since last October.
The precondition proposed by the two government agencies was to have the torch either enter or leave Taiwan via a third country, he said, adding that it was not until this month that the government changed its mind by requiring that the torch both enter and leave Taiwan via third countries before going to China.
"They [CPFS and CTOC officials] were under a lot of pressure. Before they announced their latest decision, all CPFS and CTOC officials turned off their cellphones," he said.
KMT caucus whip Hsu Shao-ping (
Former KMT chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said the government's refusal highlighted its lack of confidence in the country, urging the public to have more confidence.
"The Republic of China is a country with sovereignty. Taiwanese should have more confidence in the country," Ma said yesterday on a visit to Taichung, adding that the most important thing was to allow athletes to participate in the Olympic games.
While expressing regret over the government's decision, Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin (
In response to a reporter's query Hau said the Chinese Taipei Olympics Committee had visited the city government last month to discuss a possible route in case the torch were to come to Taipei.
"The city government did not make the decision on the torch-relay route," he added.
"The [government's decision] will attract attention from around the world. We don't know what kind of consequences the decision will bring, but we are very sorry that the torch won't pass through Taipei," Hau said yesterday at Taipei City Hall.
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