The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislative caucus yesterday imposed penalties on three lawmakers who last week abstained from a legislative vote on the importation of pork containing traces of ractopamine.
DPP legislators Lin Shu-fen (林淑芬), Chiang Yung-chang (江永昌) and Liu Chien-kuo (劉建國) were fined NT$30,000 each, and barred from running for committee membership or party leadership positions for three years for breaching party discipline, DPP caucus whip Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘) told reporters.
They have three days to appeal the decision, he added.
Lin said she “respected” the punishment, while Chiang said he “accepted” it.
Liu said a week earlier that he would accept the repercussions of his abstentions “with equanimity.”
The legislature held a series of votes on Thursday last week, when it approved nine directives related to President Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) announcement on Aug. 28 that the nation would allow the importation of US pork containing “acceptable levels” of ractopamine, a leanness-enhancing feed additive, as well as US beef from cattle aged 30 months or older.
The policy, which takes effect tomorrow, has been viewed as an effort by the government to satisfy US prerequisites to start negotiations on a bilateral trade deal.
However, it has disturbed some members of the DPP, which strongly opposed even traces of ractopamine residue in pork imports when it was an opposition party during the administration of then-president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) from 2008 to 2016.
Lin has been the sharpest critic of the policy.
On the day it was announced, she said that both of the US’ major political parties “want [Taiwanese] to eat ractopamine,” and both of Taiwan’s major parties dropped their opposition to the additive after coming to power.
It is “the farming sector, the environment, labor rights and food safety” that would suffer from the concessions, she said.
Liu, who represents a constituency in pork-producing Yunlin County, said he is concerned about the policy’s effects on local pork farmers and food safety.
Chiang has said he believes that ractopamine is safe and that removing the restrictions would benefit Taiwan’s ties with the US, but the government needed to spend more time to explain the policy and build public support.
“We are not a big market like the European Union or China, which can simply ignore the US. Taiwan is small, that is just the global reality,” Chiang said, adding that he believes people would eventually come round to the policy.
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