by Brian Hioe

語言:
English
Photo Credit: Huang Jie/Facebook

AFTER A NIGHT of protest around the legislature, with DPP legislators forcing their way into the legislature and dramatically ousting the KMT, DPP legislators were themselves pushed out of the legislative assembly chambers this morning.

The disputed issue revolves around the KMT and TPP seeking to raise the barriers for holding a recall vote in Taiwan by changing the Recall Act. The KMT hopes to institute ID checks for collecting signatures for recall petitions, which would make it more difficult for recall votes to achieve this initial benchmark. Likewise, the KMT and TPP aim to require that the number of individuals who vote for a recall need to be higher than the number that participated in the original election for the vote to be binding. As few recall votes ever have more participants than the original election, this would make successful recalls very unlikely to take place.

More concerning, laws passed mandating a minimum number of justices on the Constitutional Court for majority rulings to be made were also passed. This proves an attempt to freeze Constitutional Court, seeing as if the KMT is able to prevent more justices from being appointed to the Constitutional Court, this can prevent Taiwan’s highest court from making judgments against legislation passed by the KMT.

The legislative assembly chamber occupied by the DPP last night. Photo credit: Huang Jie/Facebook

Yet the public was probably most angered of all by the fact that the KMT decided to force the legal changes through without including the DPP in voting. On Monday, the DPP was physically blocked from attending a review meeting for the legal proposal, allowing the KMT to push the law through without the DPP in attendance. The KMT had made known its intention to simply push through the law while preventing the DPP from participating in the process.

At its peak, over 10,000 demonstrators were gathered outside of the legislature last night in protest of the KMT’s actions. This was framed as the latest Bluebird Movement demonstration against the KMT’s moves in the legislature in the last year.

Some continued to demonstrate outside of the legislature through the night, with 1,000 earlier this morning. Given the situation, there was also a sizable police presence outside of the legislature this morning.

Through the night, DPP legislators livestreamed, offering commentary on their understanding of the KMT’s moves in the legislature. DPP legislators also spoke of their experiences in past social movements in Taiwan that involved occupations, whether that be the 1990 Wild Lily Movement or the 2014 Sunflower Movement. The DPP has tried to situate its brief occupation of the legislature in the broader continuum of mostly youth-led social movements in Taiwan.

Tweet by the KMT criticizing the DPP’s actions in the legislature, calling on President Lai Ching-te to resign as DPP chair over a broken window

Several attempts were made by KMT legislators to enter the premises in the early morning hours, around 6 and 7 AM. KMT legislators were successful in breaking into the legislature shortly around 9 AM.

Afterward, both parties tussled, with KMT legislators seeking to drag DPP politicians away from the speaker’s podium. Some KMT legislators, such as Lo Chih-chiang, tried to livestream inside the legislature, with DPP legislator Puma Shen interfering with the livestream by blocking Lo’s cell phone camera with a piece of paper.

By 10:45 AM, DPP legislators were dragged out, and the KMT had taken the speaker’s podium. As such, the KMT and TPP’s changes to the Recall Act are expected to pass.

If the DPP was dragged out all too quickly, this is likely because the occupation was a form of political theater to begin with. The DPP was likely reacting to the strength of the Bluebird Movement protest and deciding to take direct action to try and win support from the public.

This was similar to the initial wave of Bluebird Movement protests earlier this year. The DPP was not so invested in the issue of blocking the KMT’s efforts to expand legislative powers until the public reacted very strongly after injuries suffered by Puma Shen in tussling with the KMT in the legislature. After the mobilizations, realizing there was something to politically gain, the DPP began to lean into the issue.

Photo credit: Huang Jie/Facebook

Either way, many moments from the protests in the past few days have provided fresh fuel for outrage against the KMT–whether that be Fu Kun-chi’s accusations that protesters are paid off by the KMT, the KMT blocking DPP lawmakers from participating in voting, or other actions. One expects further protests going forward. Protests continue outside of the legislature.
No more articles