The Constitutional Court is to hear oral arguments next month on the constitutionality of a package of controversial amendments passed by the legislature at the end of May that opposition lawmakers said would strengthen lawmakers’ ability to scrutinize the executive branch.
The oral arguments are scheduled to be held in Taipei on Aug. 6, the Judicial Yuan, which oversees the Constitutional Court, said in a news release on Thursday.
Relevant parties are to present their views on whether the amendments, which came into effect on Wednesday last week, contravene the Constitution and whether the deliberation that led up to their passage in the Legislative Yuan constituted “palpable” and “sufficient” defects.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Respective cases were brought to the court over the past week by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) caucus, the Executive Yuan, President William Lai (賴清德) and the Control Yuan, as part of a DPP-led effort to overturn amendments they said are unconstitutional.
The changes to the Act Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power (立法院職權行使法) and the Criminal Code were passed by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party lawmakers, who hold a combined majority in the legislature, on May 28.
The updated laws grant the Legislative Yuan new investigative powers, including the power to hold hearings. Public officials would be fined or imprisoned if they refuse to attend hearings or provide information when asked to do so by legislators, or if they present false information.
People or entities in the private sector might also face penalties if they are deemed uncooperative.
The amendments also include provisions that could compel the president to give an annual state of the nation address and field questions from legislators.
Thursday’s announcement came two days after the Judicial Yuan said the Constitutional Court planned to hold a preparatory hearing for an injunction requested by the DPP petitioners seeking to halt enforcement of the new amendments.
Tens of thousands of protesters gathered outside the Legislative Yuan in the days leading up to the passing of the amendments on May 28, with an estimated 100,000 demonstrators on May 24.
Taiwan has received more than US$70 million in royalties as of the end of last year from developing the F-16V jet as countries worldwide purchase or upgrade to this popular model, government and military officials said on Saturday. Taiwan funded the development of the F-16V jet and ended up the sole investor as other countries withdrew from the program. Now the F-16V is increasingly popular and countries must pay Taiwan a percentage in royalties when they purchase new F-16V aircraft or upgrade older F-16 models. The next five years are expected to be the peak for these royalties, with Taiwan potentially earning
STAY IN YOUR LANE: As the US and Israel attack Iran, the ministry has warned China not to overstep by including Taiwanese citizens in its evacuation orders The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday rebuked a statement by China’s embassy in Israel that it would evacuate Taiwanese holders of Chinese travel documents from Israel amid the latter’s escalating conflict with Iran. Tensions have risen across the Middle East in the wake of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran beginning Saturday. China subsequently issued an evacuation notice for its citizens. In a news release, the Chinese embassy in Israel said holders of “Taiwan compatriot permits (台胞證)” issued to Taiwanese nationals by Chinese authorities for travel to China — could register for evacuation to Egypt. In Taipei, the ministry yesterday said Taiwan
‘LIKE-MINDED PARTNER’: Tako van Popta said it would be inappropriate to delay signing the deal with Taiwan because of China, adding he would promote the issue Canadian senators have stressed Taiwan’s importance for international trade and expressed enthusiasm for ensuring the Taiwan-Canada trade cooperation framework agreement is implemented this year. Representative to Canada Harry Tseng (曾厚仁) in an interview with the Central News Agency (CNA) said he was increasingly uneasy about Ottawa’s delays in signing the agreement, especially as Ottawa has warmed toward Beijing. There are “no negotiations left. Not only [is it] initialed, we have three versions of the text ready: English, French and Mandarin,” Tseng said. “That tells you how close we are to the final signature.” Tseng said that he hoped Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney
POSITIVE DEVELOPMENT: Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the meeting next month, Japanese sources said The holding of a Japan-US leaders’ meeting ahead of US President Donald Trump’s visit to China is positive news for Taiwan, former Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association representative Hiroyasu Izumi said yesterday. After the Liberal Democratic Party’s landslide victory in Japan’s House of Representatives election, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi is scheduled to visit the US next month, where she is to meet with Trump ahead of the US president’s planned visit to China from March 31 to April 2 for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Japan and the US are expected to hold in-depth discussions on Taiwan-related issues during the
RSS