Members of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Taiwan Statebuilding Party (TSP) yesterday accused Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁) of trying to nullify security laws and undermine national sovereignty in the legislature after returning from China.
Fu led 16 KMT lawmakers and a number of party officials on a visit to China earlier this week, and soon after returning has been vigorous in his efforts to amend the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法) and other national security laws, TSP secretary-general Wu Hsin-tai (吳欣岱) told a news conference in Taipei.
People are seeing KMT lawmakers colluding with China to subvert Taiwan’s sovereignty by planning to nullify punishments, Wu said, also accusing Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) lawmakers of collaborating with the KMT to diminish the public’s will to fight for Taiwan.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
“We have these so-called opposition parties sitting in the legislature who are willing collaborators for China, so who needs an enemy?” Wu said, demanding that DPP legislators stand firm.
TSP Kaohsiung City Councilor Chang Po-yang (張博洋) said that China has been bullying Taiwan for decades, now with constant military intimidation.
“But Fu sees none of that and instead loves going to China, always speaking of the need to depend on the Chinese market for Taiwan to have economic prosperity,” Chang said. “Decoupling links to China has become a common trend among democratic nations, but Fu and other KMT members want to do the reverse.”
However, Beijing officials belittled Fu and his delegation, as they offered very little in return for their visit and did not open up and allow Chinese tourists to visit Taiwan as Fu had hoped for, Chang added.
Separately yesterday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮) responded to Fu on Wednesday pressuring other lawmakers to change the word “China” to “mainland” and “nation” to “Taiwan” in legislation.
“I think this action is not necessary, and Taiwanese would find it quite unbelievable,” he told a hearing at the legislature. “Official government papers have long had a tradition of finding an appropriate way when addressing the country across the Taiwan Strait, therefore I think everyone should respect such tradition.”
Meanwhile, Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) said he sees no need to change the terminology.
“In the past, people have used various terms when at different events; some spoke of China, others of the mainland,” he said. “It is still what people use during those occasions, but it points out that across the Taiwan Strait are two separate political entities.”
DPP Legislator Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) castigated Fu’s trip as groveling to Chinese leaders and taking instructions.
“Fu’s actions speak volumes,” she said.
EXCUSES: Beijing is using government and research vessels as a pretext to harass the nation and enter its EEZ, and engage in ‘hegemonic expansion,’ the coast guard said The Coast Guard Administration yesterday said it drove away Chinese oceanographic research vessel Xiang Yang Hong 22 (向陽紅33) from restricted waters after warning it that it was in Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The Chinese vessel entered restricted waters off the coast of Yilan County’s Suao (蘇澳) at 11:35pm on Thursday, the coast guard said, adding that it dispatched the Lanyu patrol vessel and the boat PP-10077 to shadow the Chinese ship and issue radio warnings ordering it to leave. China has no sovereignty over waters off Taiwan’s east coast, Lanyu’s crew told Xiang Yang Hong 22 over the radio, and demanded
Tropical Storm Mekkhala is forecast to strengthen into a typhoon tomorrow and could come close enough to Taiwan later in the week to prompt a sea warning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 2 pm, the storm was located 1,870 kilometers southeast of Taiwan's southern tip and moving west- northwest at 23 km per hour. CWA forecaster Cheng Chieh-jen (鄭傑仁) said Mekkhala is expected to continue moving west-northwest through Tuesday under the influence of the Pacific high- pressure system before gradually turning north toward waters east of Taiwan or south of the Ryukyu Islands. The timing and angle of the
Four Taiwanese universities have been ranked among the world's top 200 institutions in the Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings for next year, the highest Taiwan has ever placed in the category, with National Taiwan University (NTU) achieving its best performance at 54th globally and 17th in Asia. The four Taiwanese institutions in the global top 200 are NTU (54th), National Tsing Hua University (142nd), National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (177th) and National Cheng Kung University (191st), the rankings showed. All four universities achieved their highest-ever global rankings this year, QS data showed. National Cheng Kung University entered the top 200 for
RISING POPULARITY: Enhanced flight connectivity and a visa waiver trial program are among the motivations that have boosted travel to Taiwan by Filipinos, the agency said The Tourism Administration said yesterday that it is stepping up efforts to attract tourists from the Philippines following strong growth during the first quarter. The agency’s data showed the nation welcomed 210,000 Filipino visitors from January to March, marking a 43 percent increase compared with the same period last year. The Philippines is Taiwan’s top source of inbound tourists among the Southeast Asian nations, data showed. With a population of 116 million and national median age of 26, the Philippines boasts a young demographic with strong travel potential, the Tourism Administration said. Outbound travel demand in the Philippines continues to rise amid robust
RSS