Heated debates in Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan delay key votes

TAIPEI (TVBS News) — The Legislative Yuan witnessed a heated debate on Tuesday (May 21) as lawmakers from the Kuomintang (KMT, 國民黨) and the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP, 民進黨) clashed over amendments to the parliamentary powers act. The session, which saw only five clauses voted on by noon, was adjourned by Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) until 2:30 p.m., following a morning of staunch disagreement.

Contentious Amendments Spark Conflict

The amendments, which have been a point of contention between parties, led to significant conflicts among lawmakers last Friday (May 17), resulting in six legislators being hospitalized. The KMT and Taiwan People's Party (TPP, 民眾黨) legislators managed to occupy the speaker's podium early in the session. At the same time, DPP members entered the chamber with banners proclaiming "Democracy is Dead (民主已死)" and chanting slogans demanding a review and negotiation of the bill. The DPP caucus criticized the bill for lacking procedural justice and called for a recess to negotiate and reconsider the bill, but their proposal was defeated by a vote, overshadowed by the numerical superiority of the KMT and TPP.

Legislative Speaker Calls for Recess

Han announced a recess at noon, citing the need to welcome important foreign guests to the Legislative Yuan, with the session set to resume in the afternoon. The ongoing debate includes critical clauses on lawmakers' rights to personnel consent, investigation, and hearing, as well as proposed penalties for contempt of parliament, which could impose fines ranging from NT$20,000 to NT$200,000 for "counter-questioning."

As the Legislative Yuan prepares to reconvene, the outcome of these contentious amendments remains uncertain, with the potential to significantly impact the balance of parliamentary power in Taiwan.

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