Rein Back from the Brink, Veto Power Abuse Bills, Renew Social Dialogue, Strengthen Grassroots Democracy—A Call from Anti-Congressional Abuse of Powers Alliance
Tuesday, May 28, 2024, at 10:00 AM on Jinan Rd. (With CSOs’ statements at the press conference)
From May 17th, 21st, and 24th and up to today, more than one hundred thousand people have assembled to protest against congressional abuse of power. Their actions have thwarted the first joint attempt by the KMT and the TPP to undermine Taiwan's democratic system. According to Chung-chiang Lai, Convener of the Economic Democracy Union: "We are autonomous citizens of Taiwan. We are not here due to the call from any political party, nor will we leave because of the persuasion by any political party." This gathering marks the fourth mass assembly during consecutive plenary session in the Legislative Yuan, setting a record in the history of Taiwan’s social movements. We must remain resolute because we understand that if Taiwanese civil society shows any sign of weakness, the caucus led by Fu Kun-Chi will definitely take advantage. Beyond the three key legislative bills, there are also concerns about the Hualien-Taitung financial pitfall bill, the NCC regulations, the extension of the nuclear power plant operation, and potential amendments to the same-sex marriage law, pension reforms, the Anti-Infiltration Act, and the five law on National Security. We must firmly tell the Fu Kun-Chi group that the strength of Taiwanese citizens will not allow any regression in democracy. The Legislative Yuan must uphold the spirit of collegiality to ensure that the opinions of minority parties can be considered and discussed while the views of the majority party can be thoroughly and reasonably examined. We absolutely will not allow the new norm in our democratic parliament to be defined by the majority violence using the tactics of “shutting down proposals”, “retaining entire bills”, or “stopping discussions in three minutes”, as seen in the monopoly scheme displayed by the Blue-White Coalition. Chung-chiang Lai, Convenor of the Economic Democracy Union, also expressed the goodwill of civil society groups and urged both the KMT and the TPP to suspend the legislative preceding of the highly controversial amendment of "Contempt of Congress" of the Criminal Code. If the KMT and the TPP agree to the suspension, CSOs are willing to respond accordingly by adjusting the action plan on the third reading of the Power Abuse Bill, which is scheduled to be announced later today.
Kuan-tse Hsu, Deputy Secretary-General of the Economic Democracy Union stated that as the KMT and the TPP attempt to push through the passage of the power-abuse bill today; nevertheless, CSOs have demonstrated great resilience and successfully halted this progress. He called on the Executive Yuan to veto these bills as stipulated in the Constitution and stressed the need for comprehensive discussions, enabling both parties to re-examine the text of bills. Hsu stressed upon the importance of the spirit of grassroots democracy, urging citizens to engage in face-to-face dialogue with those holding different views. He also highlighted the need to avoid malicious attacks and to work towards achieving consensus. Lirong (Lily) Chiang, Executive Director of the Taipei Shining Sisters Alliance, stated that the politicians of both the Blue and White camps are using violent and chaotic tactics to push the bills through, driven by their apprehension of opposition from their colleagues in the same party who still have some conscience. She reaffirmed her stance against the expansion of congressional powers that encroach on human rights and judicial authority, stressing that the society can only benefit from the conclusions to be reached through discussion.
Jing-Ting (Crystal) Huang, Deputy Executive Director of the Citizens of Earth-Taiwan Foundation, highlighted that hasty legislative processes without professional assessment and evaluations have caused serious impact on public policies, such as those involving the development of Hualien and Taitung. She voiced concerns that the bills on transportation infrastructure in Hualien and Taitung have not been thoroughly discussed, which could potentially undermine the region's overall development. Huang called on the KMT to withdraw three hastily drafted bills, stressing that public infrastructure projects need comprehensive deliberation to achieve the consensus.
Yujie Chang, a volunteer of the Chen Wen-chen Foundation, criticized the comment made by a legislator to trivialize the protestors’ enthusiasm by describing the crowd as being blindly mobilized. She said that such an attitude reminded people of the White Terror era and caused the erosion of public trust in these lawmakers. She stressed upon the importance of democratic deliberation, noting that voting is just the beginning of democracy. She warned that the Legislative Yuan should not infringe human rights in the name of "congressional reform."
Leo Chang, Executive Director of Citizen Congress Watch, expressed his appreciation to the public for their participation and clarified that the rally is not to oppose congressional reform but to reject the provisions, which violate human rights and undercut the separation of powers. He urged the Legislative Yuan to exercise self-discipline by reconsidering the relevant bills and prevent the KMT and the TPP from using their majority to push the legislation through.
Yi-hsiang Shih, a senior researcher at the Taiwan Association for Human Rights, underscored that safeguarding democratic values is the major distinction between Taiwan and China. Referencing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, he highlighted that human rights exists in our daily life and criticized the KMT and the TPP for destroying Taiwan's democracy. He urged citizens to come together and oppose these bills of detrimental effect.
Talum Ispalidav, a representative of the Indigenous Youth Front, criticized indigenous legislators for abandoning the rights and interests of the indigenous communities and becoming pawns of political parties. He urged these lawmakers to engage thoroughly with their communities prior to voting on important bills, stressing that the government must honor indigenous cultures and values. Additionally, he appealed to all indigenous peoples to rise and protect their rights.
Urda Yen, founder of the Tainan Sprout Association, said that this action has generated an impact nationwide, not just on the people in the Taipei area. Since its inception in 2016, the Tainan Sprout Association has focused on parliamentary oversight and leveraged new technologies to make congressional procedures more accessible and transparent to the public. This ongoing action also aligns with the development of a chatbot designed to monitor congressional abuses of powers. She stressed that even if the third reading cannot be halted, she hopes that citizens nationwide will continue paying attention to the issues concerning parliamentary reform which affect their daily lives.
Furthermore, CSOs such as the Taiwan Labor Front, Taiwan Forever Society, Awakening Foundation, National Students’ Union of Taiwan, Covenants Watch, Human Rights Network for Tibet and Taiwan, Healthcare Monitoring Alliance, Nylon Cheng Liberty Foundation, Taiwan Nation, Judicial Reform Foundation, Green Citizens' Action Alliance, New School for Democracy, Taiwan Renewable Energy Alliance, Taiwan Indigenous Youth Association for Public Affairs, Lai Ho Foundation, and 424 Foundation have also voiced their support for the action.
The event today once again showed the immense strength and resilience of the civil society in Taiwan. Chung-chiang Lai also urged the people in the assembly to uphold their faith in democracy, the power of Taiwan's autonomous citizenship, and the collective wisdom of Taiwanese society.
Speakers:
賴中強｜經濟民主連合智庫召集人 Chung-chiang Lai | Convener, Economic Democracy Union
許冠澤｜經濟民主連合副秘書長 Kuan-tse Hsu | Deputy Secretary-General, Economic Democracy Union
蔣理容｜台北水噹噹姊妹聯盟常務理事蔣理容 Lirong (Lily) Chiang | Executive Director, Taipei Shining Sisters Alliance
黃靖庭｜地球公民基金會副執行長 Jing-Ting (Crystal) Huang | Deputy Executive Director, Citizens of Earth-Taiwan Foundation
張瑀婕｜陳文成基金會志工 Yujie Chang | Volunteer, Chen Wen-chen Foundation
張宏林｜公民監督國會聯盟執行長 Leo Chang | Executive Director, Citizen Congress Watch
施逸翔｜台灣人權促進會資深研究員 Yi-hsiang Shih | Senior Researcher, Taiwan Association for Human Rights
Talum Ispalidav｜原住民族青年陣線 Talum Ispalidav | Indigenous Youth Front
嚴婉玲｜台南新芽協會理事 Urda Yen, Founder, Tainan Sprout Association
媒體聯絡人：
Candia Tong 0965605503 For media inquiries, please contact Candia Tong at 0965605503.