The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday scrapped plans for protests outside the Legislative Yuan in Taipei against the importation of US pork containing ractopamine, after the nation on Tuesday reported its first locally transmitted case of COVID-19 in more than eight months.
Ahead of the legislature’s review today of administrative directives related to the government’s decision to allow imports of US pork containing residue of the animal feed additive, the KMT had planned to begin a rally on Jinan Road (濟南路) in front of the Legislative Yuan’s Chun-hsien Building (群賢樓) at 5:30pm yesterday.
From 9am today, the KMT and its supporters were scheduled to march around the Legislative Yuan complex once every hour as lawmakers vote inside. Former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) and members of non-governmental organizations were to lead the processions, KMT legislative caucus whip Lin Wei-chou (林為洲) had said on Monday.
However, the KMT at about 2pm yesterday released a statement saying that it was canceling all of the demonstrations.
The decision was in response to the domestic COVID-19 infection, as well as new disease prevention guidelines issued by the Central Epidemic Command Center, the KMT said.
In lieu of yesterday’s rally, KMT lawmakers at 6:30pm began a livestream of speeches from a stage in front of the Chun-hsien building “to express [their] firm opposition to the importation of pork with ractopamine,” it said.
The lawmakers said they would stay overnight.
Tents could be seen at the site, while police had set up barriers and blocked traffic to the area.
Dozens of KMT members and supporters had gathered on Jinan Road as of press time last night.
The party urged people to watch a live broadcast of today’s Legislative Yuan meeting, and to continue to telephone the offices of Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers, who hold a majority in the legislature, to express their opposition to the policy.
KMT Chairman Johnny Chiang (江啟臣) told a weekly KMT Central Standing Committee meeting in Taipei yesterday that despite the change in plans, the KMT’s determination to oppose the importation of pork with traces of ractopamine “will not change.”
He said he hoped DPP lawmakers could “stand with the majority of public opinion.”
A referendum proposal raised by the KMT would allow people to decide themselves whether to allow pork imports containing leanness-enhancing additives, Chiang said.
Lin is the leading proposer of a national referendum that would ask voters if they agree that the government should impose a complete ban on the importation of meat, offal and related products from pigs fed ractopamine.
The Central Election Commission (CEC) on Friday last week met to consider the referendum proposal, among others, and announced the same day that Lin’s proposal had met the requirements for the proposal stage following the commission’s request on Nov. 25 for a correction.
The commission would ask household registration authorities to check within 15 days the list of proposers that was submitted, the commission said.
In the signature collection stage, the KMT would have six months to submit a list of signatories amounting to no less than 1.5 percent of the total electorate in the most recent presidential election, according to the Referendum Act (公民投票法).
CEC data showed there were 19,311,105 eligible voters in the Jan. 11 election, meaning that nearly 290,000 valid signatures would be required for the proposed referendum to be carried out.
As the act stipulates that referendums be held once every two years on the fourth Saturday of August, the next possible date for a referendum would be Aug. 28 next year.
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