The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday convened to discuss referendums to counter Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) proposals, KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁) said yesterday.
The DPP has proposed four referendums aimed at the opposition party, a challenge the KMT would not shy from, Fu said.
The KMT referendums would focus heavily on the welfare of Taiwanese, he said.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
Some local media reported that a participant at the caucus meeting said they had discussed proposing a referendum against the abolition of the death penalty to counter recall campaigns against KMT legislators.
That person also said the party hoped the recall vote could be on the same day as voting on referendums, expected to be held on Aug. 23.
Asked if the party would propose a referendum to keep the death penalty, Fu said the caucus had not yet arrived at a consensus, adding that it must complete all procedures before May 23, leaving little time to prepare additional proposals on capital punishment.
Under amendments to the Referendum Act (公民投票法), referendums are held every two years on the fourth Saturday of August.
Referendum proposals need 1,995 signatures to pass the initial threshold and 290,000 signatures to be sustained, the KMT said.
If a proposal does not meet referendum requirements, the party is considering proposing it at the Legislative Yuan, it said.
Under Article 15 of the Referendum Act, if the legislature deems it necessary to hold a referendum, it can — after the main text and the statement of reasons for the referendum are adopted in a plenary session — forward the proposal to the Central Election Commission for implementation within 10 days.
Separately, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said during a meeting of the KMT’s Central Standing Committee that he would shoulder all responsibility for the controversy generated by the party’s recall proposals and asked supporters to stop blaming volunteers.
Thirty-two recall proposals against KMT members had passed signature thresholds, while all recall proposals against DPP members have failed to pass and require supplementary signatures.
The party is in close contact with legislators on the issue of recalls and understands the importance of effectively mobilizing supporters.
The KMT recognizes that some parts of its recall campaign were not perfect, Chu said, adding that he is responsible as party chairman.
Additional reporting by CNA
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is pushing for residents of Kinmen and Lienchiang counties to acquire Chinese ID cards in a bid to “blur national identities,” a source said. The efforts are part of China’s promotion of a “Kinmen-Xiamen twin-city living sphere, including a cross-strait integration pilot zone in China’s Fujian Province,” the source said. “The CCP is already treating residents of these outlying islands as Chinese citizens. It has also intensified its ‘united front’ efforts and infiltration of those islands,” the source said. “There is increasing evidence of espionage in Kinmen, particularly of Taiwanese military personnel being recruited by the
ENTERTAINERS IN CHINA: Taiwanese generally back the government being firm on infiltration and ‘united front’ work,’ the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association said Most people support the government probing Taiwanese entertainers for allegedly “amplifying” the Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda, a survey conducted by the Asia-Pacific Elite Interchange Association showed on Friday. Public support stood at 56.4 percent for action by the Mainland Affairs Council and the Ministry of Culture to enhance scrutiny on Taiwanese performers and artists who have developed careers in China while allegedly adhering to the narrative of Beijing’s propaganda that denigrates or harms Taiwanese sovereignty, the poll showed. Thirty-three percent did not support the action, it showed. The poll showed that 51.5 percent of respondents supported the government’s investigation into Taiwanese who have
Left-Handed Girl (左撇子女孩), a film by Taiwanese director Tsou Shih-ching (鄒時擎) and cowritten by Oscar-winning director Sean Baker, won the Gan Foundation Award for Distribution at the Cannes Critics’ Week on Wednesday. The award, which includes a 20,000 euro (US$22,656) prize, is intended to support the French release of a first or second feature film by a new director. According to Critics’ Week, the prize would go to the film’s French distributor, Le Pacte. "A melodrama full of twists and turns, Left-Handed Girl retraces the daily life of a single mother and her two daughters in Taipei, combining the irresistible charm of
South Korean K-pop girl group Blackpink are to make Kaohsiung the first stop on their Asia tour when they perform at Kaohsiung National Stadium on Oct. 18 and 19, the event organizer said yesterday. The upcoming performances will also make Blackpink the first girl group ever to perform twice at the stadium. It will be the group’s third visit to Taiwan to stage a concert. The last time Blackpink held a concert in the city was in March 2023. Their first concert in Taiwan was on March 3, 2019, at NTSU Arena (Linkou Arena). The group’s 2022-2023 “Born Pink” tour set a
RSS