Opposition party lawmakers have severely harmed national security by cutting military spending, blocking efforts to bolster defense and pandering to Beijing’s interest through China-friendly bills, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday.
Over the past year, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators introduced numerous bills the DPP believe to be friendly toward China or would weaken Taiwan, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) said.
KMT caucus whip Fu Kun-chi (傅?萁) has called for the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法) to be annulled to stop prosecution of proxies and collaborators of Beijing, while KMT legislators Chen Yu-jen (陳玉珍) and Weng Hsiao-ling (翁曉玲) are seeking to allow retired military officials to visit China and that those who participate in Chinese “united front” events to not face penalties, Wu said.
Photo: Fang Pin-chao, Taipei Times
Opposition party lawmakers are continuing on a similar path this year, slashing NT$150 billion (US$4.95 billion) earmarked for the Cabinet’s plan to strengthen national defense resilience, DPP spokeswoman Han Ying (韓瑩) said.
The cuts would embolden China to continue its military intrusions into around Taiwan, Wu said.
The KMT and the Taiwan People’s Party have worked to concentrate power in the legislature at expense of other government branches, by obstructing the Constitutional Court, creating political turmoil, blocking DPP bills related to defense and national security 377 times against, and slashing funding for the military and weapon upgrading, Han said.
“Now we are dealing with negotiations on tariffs and international trade, while the KMT is pushing to set up free-trade zones for outlying islands close to China’s coast, which would open up investments from China, providing a conduit for origin fraud of Chinese export goods,” she said.
“It would destroy the excellent reputation built up over the decades for made in Taiwan products and erode Taiwan’s standing in trade negotiations,” she added.
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