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TSU files appeal over blocked
referendums
TRY, TRY AGAIN:Huang Kun-huei said he was fighting on
behalf of the hundreds of thousands of people who had signed the referendum
petitions
By Vincent Y. Chao / Staff reporter
Taiwan Solidarity Union Chairman Huang Kun-huei,
left, emerges from the Taipei High Administrative Court yesterday after filing
an appeal against the Central Election Commission’s rejection last year of a
referendum on the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement.
PHOTO: CHANG CHIA-MING, TAIPEI TIMES
The decision to quash a referendum proposal over the Economic Cooperation
Framework Agreement (ECFA) with China was appealed yesterday, the latest
development in a saga that began almost a year ago.
Documents for the appeal were submitted by Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU)
Chairman Huang Kun-huei (黃昆輝) at the Taipei High Administrative Court, which
will hold its first official hearing for the issue on Feb. 21.
TSU officials say they are unsure when the court will render its decision.
The appeal was filed after the Central Election Commission, referring to a
decision reached by the Referendum Review Committee, last month turned down
Huang’s petition to hold a referendum on whether voters agree with the ECFA.
Given the two previous rejections, the commission said it did not believe the
latest bid fell under what was allowed under the Referendum Act (公民投票法). In a
10-4 decision, committee members said they had no choice but to issue another
rejection.
Huang said yesterday that the committee’s decision violated the public’s
constitutional rights and was a serious affront to Taiwan’s democracy.
“Their verdict takes away the people’s right to appeal [a government decision],
something that is a basic right outlined in the Constitution,” he said,
referring to the ECFA, signed by cross-strait negotiators last June.
Huang said that the appeal was aimed toward the Central Election Commission,
contending that it also broke the law when it based the decision on a vote
reached by the Referendum Review Committee.
Huang said the committee had overstepped its jurisdiction by striking down all
three referendum proposals.
Given the regulations covering eligibility, the referendum petitions should have
received initial approval before advancing to a second stage.
The TSU says only the Central Election Commission, and not the committee, is
entitled to rule on whether the content of a referendum proposal is qualified.
Last year, the TSU also sued 12 committee members that voted against an earlier
proposal, claiming their decision was illegal.
Huang said he was fighting for the hundreds of thousands of people who had
signed the TSU referendum petitions.
“I just hope that the justice system can return to the Taiwanese people some of
their basic human rights and protect Taiwan’s democracy,” he said.
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