A group of 17 Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators departed on Friday for China, saying before their flight that they believe the trip is the right decision despite criticism from the opposition.
The lawmakers led by KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅崐萁) held a news conference at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 2:30pm before their flight.
They were met by protesters and supporters, with both sides holding placards either criticizing them for leaving amidst natural disasters or calling for cross-strait interaction.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
In addition to Fu, other members of the delegation include KMT legislators Chang Chih-lun (張智倫), Liao Hsien-hsiang (廖先翔), Chen Hsueh-sheng (陳雪生), Chen Yu-chen (陳玉珍), Huang Jen (黃仁), Weng Hsiao-ling (翁曉玲), Cheng Cheng-chien (鄭正鈐), Lin Chien-chi (林倩綺), Chiu Chen-chun (邱鎮軍), Yu Hao (游顥), Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥), Hsu Hsin-ying (徐欣瑩), Sasuyu Ruljuwan and Sra Kacaw.
As the morning’s legislative procedures ended early, KMT legislators Lo Ming-tsai (羅明才) and Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇) reportedly decided to join last minute.
Speaking to reporters at the legislature in the morning, Huang said that the party’s lawmakers had heard the public’s response to the trip, but decided that the people’s livelihood is the most important thing.
There should be positive interaction in cross-strait relations, he said.
Weng said she hopes to share Taiwan’s agricultural and fishery products with “Chinese friends.”
There is no wrong time to promote economic exchange, she said, adding that if the Democratic Progressive Party would not do it, the KMT will.
Cheng said that the group has still not seen the itinerary, but trusts that Fu will organize it well.
He denied that they were sworn to secrecy, saying only that they did not ask many details.
Chen said that the main goal of the visit was to convey to China the desire for peace, resumption of tourism and promotion of cross-strait development.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
RSS