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DPP legislators on alert as KMT
debates move
By Shih Hsiu-chuan / Staff reporter
DPP lawmakers Lee Kun-tse, left,
and Chao Tien-lin check on the cable wire the opposition lawmakers used to block
the door to the chamber at the legislature.
Photo: Taipei Times
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) was
last night debating how to open entrances to the legislative chamber which have
been blocked by the opposition since Monday, preventing Legislative Speaker Wang
Jin-pyng (王金平) from entering to call a vote on whether to allow imports of meat
products containing traces of the leanness-enhancing drug ractopamine.
At about 8:35pm, legislative staff were asked to get KMT lawmakers some shears
as they planned to cut cable wire that had been tied to piles of chairs and the
two doors to the chamber through which Wang usually passes to preside over
plenary sessions.
No action had been taken as of press time.
On the third day of the 120-hour boycott of legislative proceedings to block the
vote, the opposition intensified its readiness against the ruling party, which
has vowed to resolve the beef issue before the legislative session ends
tomorrow.
Throughout the day, rumors spread that the KMT would initiate counteractions at
“anytime” against the opposition lawmakers, KMT Legislator Wu Yu-sheng (吳育昇)
said.
The occupation is part of a strategy to demand that the government cease its
policy of raising electricity rates and that it retain the ban on imports of
meat products containing ractopamine.
“We have demanded that our caucus members who have returned to their
constituencies to help flood victims, return to Taipei and stay close to the
legislature,” Wu said at about 4pm after the caucus called a meeting to plan a
strategy.
However, as of last night, a substantial number of KMT lawmakers were not in
Taipei. The KMT caucus, which has 64 seats, estimated that between 20 and 30
lawmakers were on standby.
At about 5pm, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) decided to hold the fort to
prevent any “ambush” overnight.
All DPP caucus members were ordered to stay in the chamber overnight, replacing
the previous rotating shifts whereby half the party’s legislators were allowed
to leave the chamber, while the other half remained on duty, DPP legislative
caucus whip Pan Men-an (潘孟安) said.
At about 6:30pm, rumors spread that the KMT planned to enter the chamber at 8pm.
That triggered the opposition to place more chairs against the two entrances to
the chamber and to use more cable wire to tie them to the doors.
After dinner, DPP lawmakers conducted a drill to practice occupying the
speaker’s podium.
“Oppose raising electricity prices. Oppose authoritarianism. Oppose
leanness-enhancing agents,” they shouted as they lined up arm-in-arm on the
speaker’s podium.
People First Party and Taiwan Solidarity Union lawmakers also joined the drill.
At one point in the morning, PFP Legislator Chang Show-foong (張曉風), a well-known
writer, turned up and stood at the podium, sparking a round of applause for the
71-year-old for his decision to “fight for the people.”
The opposition vowed to continue the protest until tomorrow.
Earlier yesterday, Wang categorically rejected an idea proposed by Wu that he
call in police to clear the floor to allow proceedings to take place.
Stressing the principle of “legislative autonomy,” Wang said it would be
“intolerable” to allow any external forces to interfere with legislative
proceedings.
“The legislature shall operate fully independently of any external interference.
Police are here to ensure the safety of the legislature. As for interactions
that occur among lawmakers, that’s another matter,” Wang said.
Wang said intervention by police would only complicate the situation.
“Although we hope to resolve the US beef issue and other issues in this session,
stopping the confrontation from deteriorating into a situation that affects
political stability and harmony in the long run is more important,” Wang said.
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