Taiwan opposition poised to pass controversial bills as backlash grows
Ex-U.S. envoys call move to strengthen legislature 'potentially unconstitutional'
TAIPEI -- Taiwan's parliamentary crisis escalated Tuesday, as the opposition prepared to use its majority in the legislature to force through controversial bills despite growing protests and concerns raised by former U.S. officials and academics.
Inside the Legislative Yuan, lawmakers from the main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) and the Taiwan People's Party (TPP), which together command a majority, had commandeered the area around speaker Han Kuo-yu's chair to ensure he can move proceedings forward without interruption. Some lawmakers were outfitted in protective gear, ready for more physical confrontations, after politicians brawled over the bills on Friday.
Taiwan has been plunged into political turmoil just as its new president, Lai Ching-te from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), starts his term. In an early threat to his presidency, the KMT and TPP are seeking to pass laws that would dramatically expand parliamentary powers and take control of a huge slice of the budget. Sources close to the process expected they could attempt to complete the vote by Tuesday night.
In Taiwan, the president does not have the power to veto bills passed by the legislature.
Under the proposals, government officials could be jailed for up to a year for remarks made during parliamentary hearings that legislators deem to conceal facts or to be false. In effect, this would make lawmakers the arbiters of truth in a divided political environment. If officials under scrutiny reply with questions of their own, a jail term of up to six months may apply.
Former U.S. envoys are among those warning that the opposition parties' plans are "potentially unconstitutional."
William Stanton and Stephen Young, two retired U.S. diplomats who served as de facto ambassadors to Taiwan, joined a number of former officials and academics in criticizing the sweeping bills -- notably the introduction of contempt of parliament charges, a requirement for the head of state to report to and take questions from legislators, and a broadening of the legislature's investigative powers.
The reforms "surpass the scope and power of parliamentary authority found in most other constitutional democracies, including allowing for government officials to be jailed simply for asking questions during hearings," said a joint statement signed by Stanton, Young and others.
The statement said that while contempt of parliament charges exist in other democracies, they are generally applied to defiance of lawfully ordered subpoenas or lying during judicial investigations. "No democracy has applied contempt charges to officials discharging duties during the course of regular hearings or for merely 'talking back,'" the statement said.
The bills "tarnish Taiwan's image for good governance and further create political rifts at a time it can ill afford to do so, given growing challenges and complexities from Beijing," the signatories warned.
Despite the criticism and a growing public backlash, the opposition appears intent on pressing ahead. KMT lawmaker Chen Yu-Jen posted a photo online showing herself sitting outside the chamber at around 3:40 a.m. "If you really care about procedural justice, just sit on your chairs and vote properly, and don't set a wrong example for the people outside," she wrote, referring to protesters.
By midday on Tuesday, a crowd of demonstrators that appeared to number at least a thousand had gathered near the Legislative Yuan. One protester held up a placard saying, "The legislature is abusing power; democracy is backsliding."
Leading lawyers in Taiwan have already condemned the opposition's attempts to pass the contentious bills without proper deliberation. The Taiwan Bar Association, a national body representing the legal profession, warned that the proposals have far-reaching consequences for Taiwan's constitutional order, and urged the legislature to "substantively discuss and review" them.
DPP lawmakers have accused the opposition coalition of undermining democracy.
Nick Marro, lead for global trade and analyst for Asia and China at the Economist Intelligence Unit, said in a note that the physical scuffles do not signal a deterioration of Taiwan's political stability or democratic institutions. Still, he said that "it's looking like the KMT and TPP will play a largely obstructionist role in the Legislative Yuan."
"This could significantly dent the government's effectiveness over Lai's first term, and will have consequences for his ability to address hot-button domestic issues in Taiwan, including sky-high home prices and sluggish wage growth," Marro said.
Meanwhile, Speaker Han, a controversial figure from the KMT, has drawn criticism for asking legislators, for the first time in more than three decades, to use a show of hands rather than a recorded vote.
The statement by Stanton, Young and others noted that break with standard practice, as well as the way the KMT and TPP have denied DPP lawmakers the chance to recommend amendments, debate or even review individual articles within the proposals.
The critics added that the demand for Taiwan's president to participate in a legislative question and answer session also runs counter to the constitution, which only allows for the president to deliver a "State of the Nation" address, they said.
Even the KMT's former President Ma Ying-jeou, himself a legal jurist, had once said a Q&A proposal would "confound" the presidential role, they added.
But Fu Kun-chi, the KMT's parliamentary leader, said the proposals must be cleared by the legislature "to bring the politics of the Republic of China to a higher level, to be in line with democratic countries around the world, and to allow the sun to shine in."