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Cross-strait review
pushed to March
By Shih Hsiu-chuan / Staff reporter
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday backed away from its plan to call
an extra legislative session next month to push through the controversial
cross-strait service trade agreement, meaning that the review process for the
deal is not to begin until March next year.
“As there are still another three public hearings, we have decided during
cross-party negotiations that no extra session to discuss the agreement will be
called during the recess,” KMT legislative caucus whip Lin Te-fu (林德福) said.
A total of 16 public hearings were scheduled to be held by the legislature’s
Internal Administration Committee from Sept. 30. The three remaining sessions
are set for Jan. 2, Jan. 13 and March 10.
Caucus whips from all parties reached the decision not to hold an extra
legislative session at a meeting chaired by Legislative Speaker Wang Jin-pyng
(王金平) yesterday.
The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Taiwan Solidarity Union (TSU)
caucuses had vowed to boycott a screening of the cross-strait service trade
agreement “at all costs,” should the KMT caucus initiate an extra session to
ratify the agreement during the recess .
Lawmakers decided to extend the current session, which comes to an end on Dec.
31, to Jan. 14 to complete a review of amendments to the Communication Security
and Surveillance Act (通訊保障及監察法).
The amendments were pushed to the forefront in this legislature session due to
revelations of illegal wiretapping practices in the cases related to allegations
that the legislative speaker and DPP legislative caucus whip Ker Chien-ming
(柯建銘) exerted undue influence on the judicial system.
The cases also prompted some legislators to propose an amendment to the Organic
Act of Courts (法院組織法) to abolish the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office Special
Investigation Division over the controversial measures used by
Prosecutor-General Huang Shih-ming (黃世銘) to investigate the alleged improper
lobbying.
However, lawmakers decided yesterday to delay in the session a review of this
amendment, according to TSU legislative caucus whip Hsu Chung-hsin (許忠信).
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