Opposition lawmakers yesterday called on the government to implement more robust policies to better protect Taiwan from Chinese economic and military aggression.
Citing China’s ban on products from 100 Taiwanese companies announced on Monday, Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Legislator Chiu Chen-yuan (邱臣遠) said the government should implement four measures to better protect agricultural producers.
It should establish a dedicated consulting and counseling unit, and a dedicated hotline to provide assistance to affected businesses, he said.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
It should also expand overseas markets for Taiwanese products, improve inspection of agricultural products before export and negotiate agricultural trade agreements with several nations, he said.
The largest market for many of Taiwan’s agricultural and fisheries products is China, TPP Legislator Jang Chyi-lu (張其祿) said, citing groupers and beltfish, 90 percent of which are sold to China.
The proportion of mackerel sold to China has also increased from 49 percent last year to 72 percent this year, he said.
In response, Bureau of Foreign Trade Deputy Director-General Lee Guann-jyh (李冠志) said the government is diversifying export markets of products such as processed foods, of which the US buys 30 percent, while China buys only 12 percent.
Council of Agriculture Department of International Affairs Deputy Director Lin Chih-hung (林志鴻) said his office is also busy working on expanding overseas markets.
It is providing incentives and subsidies for grouper sales to overseas markets and had already exported 151 tonnes of the fish as of Sunday, he said, adding that it is aiming for 300 tonnes by the end of the year.
The proportion of fresh fruit sold to China was also reduced to 41 percent last year from 84 percent the year before, he said.
Separately, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators urged the government not to employ an “anti-China protectionist” economic policy as a tactic to perform well in the local elections in November.
The government should provide necessary assistance and subsidies to companies, farmers and fishers affected by China’s import bans, KMT caucus whip William Tseng (曾銘宗) said.
“The government should assume that China would take retaliatory economic measures one after another, and should put forward a specific plan and to assist affected industries,” he said.
The government should restore the 2008 Cross-Strait Food Safety Agreement (海峽兩岸食品安全協議) and reopen cross-strait channels of communication as soon as possible, KMT caucus deputy secretary-general Lee De-wei (李德維) said.
KMT Legislator Hung Meng-kai (洪孟楷) criticized a rural tourism lottery implemented by the Council of Agriculture as a means of boosting revenue for farmers, saying the measure was far from adequate.
“The council should appeal to the WTO and fight for Taiwanese farmers’ and fishers’ rights,” he said.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
The Taipei District Court sentenced babysitters Liu Tsai-hsuan (劉彩萱) and Liu Jou-lin (劉若琳) to life and 18 years in prison respectively today for causing the death of a one-year-old boy in December 2023. The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said that Liu Tsai-hsuan was entrusted with the care of a one-year-old boy, nicknamed Kai Kai (剴剴), in August 2023 by the Child Welfare League Foundation. From Sept. 1 to Dec. 23 that year, she and her sister Liu Jou-lin allegedly committed acts of abuse against the boy, who was rushed to the hospital with severe injuries on Dec. 24, 2023, but did not