Latest news with #TaiwanAffairsOffice
The Star
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
Move to recall opposition lawmakers fails
Feeling glad: Lawmakers of Taiwan's Opposition Nationalist Party and party staff cheering after a press conference in Taipei. — AP THE country's opposition lawmakers have survived a major recall election, thwarting a bid to oust one-fifth of the island's parliamentarians – a move supporters had hoped would send a message to China but that opponents called an assault on democracy. All recall votes against 24 lawmakers from the largest opposition party, the Kuomintang, were rejected, according to live vote counts by Taiwanese media. The voting followed a campaign begun by civic groups. The election result is a blow to President Lai Ching-te's Democratic Progressive Party, which has missed an opportunity to reshape the Taiwan legislature and regain its majority. The government said the island's largest-ever recall vote had faced 'unprecedented' election interference by China, which claims the democratically governed island as its own – a claim Taiwan rejects. While Lai won last year's presidential election, the DPP lost its legislative majority. The opposition has flexed its muscles since then to pass laws the government has opposed and impose budget cuts, complicating efforts to boost defence spending in particular. KMT Chairman Eric Chu thanked Taiwan's voters and called for Lai to apologise and reflect on his own governance. 'One should not lose the elections and then call for malicious recalls. One should not seek one-party dominance and destroy democracy,' he told a press briefing in Taipei. 'Most importantly, the people of Taiwan chose stability and a government that gets things done, rather than political infighting.' The political drama comes as China ramps up a military and diplomatic pressure campaign against Taiwan to assert its territorial claims. Lai has offered talks with Beijing many times but been rebuffed. It calls him a 'separatist'. The heated recall campaign has been closely watched by China, whose Taiwan Affairs Office and state media have repeatedly commented on the vote and used some of the same talking points as the KMT to lambaste Lai, Reuters reported. The Taiwan Affairs Office said in a statement yesterday that the voting results show that 'the DPP's political manipulation is completely contrary to the people's will and is unpopular'. — Reuters
AsiaOne
4 days ago
- Politics
- AsiaOne
Taiwan move to recall opposition lawmakers fails, Asia News
TAIPEI - Taiwan opposition lawmakers survived a major recall election on Saturday (July 26), thwarting a bid to oust one-fifth of the island's parliamentarians - a move supporters had hoped would send a message to China but that opponents called an assault on democracy. All recall votes against 24 lawmakers from the largest opposition party, the Kuomintang, were rejected, according to live vote counts by Taiwanese media. The voting followed a campaign begun by civic groups. The election result is a blow to President Lai Ching-te's Democratic Progressive Party, which has missed an opportunity to reshape the Taiwan legislature and regain its majority. The government said the island's largest-ever recall vote had faced "unprecedented" election interference by China, which claims the democratically governed island as its own - a claim Taiwan rejects. While Lai won last year's presidential election, the DPP lost its legislative majority. The opposition has flexed its muscles since then to pass laws the government has opposed and impose budget cuts, complicating efforts to boost defence spending in particular. KMT Chairman Eric Chu thanked Taiwan's voters and called for Lai to apologise and reflect on his own governance. "One should not lose the elections and then call for malicious recalls. One should not seek one-party dominance and destroy democracy," he told a press briefing in Taipei. "Most importantly, the people of Taiwan chose stability and chose a government that gets things done, rather than political infighting." The political drama comes as China ramps up a military and diplomatic pressure campaign against Taiwan to assert its territorial claims. Lai has offered talks with Beijing many times but been rebuffed. It calls him a "separatist". The heated recall campaign has been closely watched by China, whose Taiwan Affairs Office and state media have repeatedly commented on the vote and used some of the same talking points as the KMT to lambaste Lai, Reuters reported last week. The Taiwan Affairs Office said in a statement on Sunday that the voting results show that "the DPP's political manipulation is completely contrary to the people's will and is unpopular". Taipei said on Wednesday that Beijing was "clearly" trying to interfere in its democracy and it was up to Taiwan's people to decide who should be removed from or stay in office. [[nid:720531]] Wu Szu-yao, secretary general of the DPP's legislative caucus, said the party respected the voters' decision with pleasure, adding that the result would only strengthen the DPP's "anti-communist and pro-Taiwan" stance. "This time we saw China was trying everything it could to intervene," she told reporters at party headquarters in Taipei, pointing to Chinese military pressure and a disinformation campaign. "We must be more vigilant against their possible malicious intentions toward Taiwan." The groups seeking the recalls said theirs was an "anti-communist" movement, accusing the KMT of selling out Taiwan by sending lawmakers to China, not supporting defence spending and bringing chaos to parliament. The KMT rejects the accusations, denouncing Lai's "dictatorship" and "green terror" - referring to the DPP's party colour. The KMT campaigned against what it called a "malicious" recall that failed to respect the result of last year's parliamentary election, saying they have simply been keeping lines of communication open with Beijing and exercising legitimate oversight of Lai's government. Recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers will be held on Aug 23.
The Star
4 days ago
- Politics
- The Star
Taiwan move to recall opposition lawmakers fails
Lawmakers of Taiwan Opposition Nationalist Party and party staff cheer after a press conference in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, July 26, 2025. - AP TAIPEI: Taiwan opposition lawmakers survived a major recall election on Saturday (July 26), thwarting a bid to oust one-fifth of the island's parliamentarians - a move supporters had hoped would send a message to China but that opponents called an assault on democracy. All recall votes against 24 lawmakers from the largest opposition party, the Kuomintang, were rejected, according to live vote counts by Taiwanese media. The voting followed a campaign begun by civic groups. The election result is a blow to President Lai Ching-te's Democratic Progressive Party, which has missed an opportunity to reshape the Taiwan legislature and regain its majority. The government said the island's largest-ever recall vote had faced "unprecedented" election interference by China, which claims the democratically governed island as its own - a claim Taiwan rejects. While Lai won last year's presidential election, the DPP lost its legislative majority. The opposition has flexed its muscles since then to pass laws the government has opposed and impose budget cuts, complicating efforts to boost defence spending in particular. KMT Chairman Eric Chu thanked Taiwan's voters and called for Lai to apologise and reflect on his own governance. "One should not lose the elections and then call for malicious recalls. One should not seek one-party dominance and destroy democracy," he told a press briefing in Taipei. "Most importantly, the people of Taiwan chose stability and chose a government that gets things done, rather than political infighting." The political drama comes as China ramps up a military and diplomatic pressure campaign against Taiwan to assert its territorial claims. Lai has offered talks with Beijing many times but been rebuffed. It calls him a "separatist". The heated recall campaign has been closely watched by China, whose Taiwan Affairs Office and state media have repeatedly commented on the vote and used some of the same talking points as the KMT to lambaste Lai, Reuters reported last week. The Taiwan Affairs Office said in a statement on Sunday that the voting results show that "the DPP's political manipulation is completely contrary to the people's will and is unpopular". Wu Szu-yao, secretary general of the DPP's legislative caucus, said the party respected the voters' decision with pleasure, adding that the result would only strengthen the DPP's "anti-communist and pro-Taiwan" stance. The groups seeking the recalls said theirs was an "anti-communist" movement, accusing the KMT of selling out Taiwan by sending lawmakers to China, not supporting defence spending and bringing chaos to parliament. The KMT rejects the accusations, denouncing Lai's "dictatorship" and "green terror" - referring to the DPP's party colour. The KMT campaigned against what it called a "malicious" recall that failed to respect the result of last year's parliamentary election, saying they have simply been keeping lines of communication open with Beijing and exercising legitimate oversight of Lai's government. Recall votes for seven other KMT lawmakers will be held on August 23. - Reuters
ABC News
24-07-2025
- Politics
- ABC News
Taiwan says China is 'clearly' trying to interfere in its democracy ahead of recall vote
China is "clearly" trying to interfere in Taiwan's democracy and it is up to Taiwan's people to decide who should be removed from or stay in office, the island's government says ahead of a recall vote for around one-fifth of politicians. On Saturday, Taiwanese voters will decide on the fate of 24 politicians from Taiwan's largest opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT), in a recall campaign. The campaign was started by civic groups who accused the politicians of cosying up to Beijing, which views the island as its own territory. The KMT denies being pro-Beijing, but says it needs to keep lines of communication with China open. It has denounced the recalls as a "malicious" attack on democracy that does not respect the results of last year's parliamentary election. China's Taiwan Affairs Office and Chinese state media have repeatedly commented on the recall vote and used some of the same talking points as the Kuomintang. Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said it "rejects the Chinese Communist Party's intervention". "Recall in Taiwan is a civil right guaranteed by the constitution, and it is up to the people of Taiwan to decide who should or should not be removed from office." China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment. While President Lai Ching-te won the election last year, his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lost its legislative majority. The opposition has flexed its muscles since then to pass laws the government has opposed and impose budget cuts, complicating efforts to boost defence spending in particular. The recall campaign has been happening against a backdrop of China ramping up its own military and diplomatic pressure campaign against Taiwan to assert territorial claims that Taiwan resolutely rejects. Reuters
Reuters
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
China 'clearly' trying to interfere in Taiwan's democracy, Taipei says before recall vote
TAIPEI, July 23 (Reuters) - China is "clearly" trying to interfere in Taiwan's democracy and it is up to Taiwan's people to decide who should be removed from or stay in office, the island's government said on Wednesday ahead of a recall vote for around one-fifth of lawmakers. On Saturday, Taiwan voters will decide on the fate of 24 lawmakers from Taiwan's largest opposition party, the Kuomintang (KMT), in a recall campaign started by civic groups who accuse the lawmakers of cozying up to Beijing, which views the island as its own territory. The KMT denies being pro-Beijing, but says it needs to keep lines of communication with China open, and has denounced the recalls as a "malicious" attack on democracy that does not respect the results of last year's parliamentary election. China's Taiwan Affairs Office and Chinese state media have repeatedly commented on the recall vote and used some of the same talking points as the Kuomintang, Reuters reported this week. In a post on Facebook citing the Reuters report and research by Taiwan's IORG, which analyses Chinese state media reports, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council said it "rejects the Chinese Communist Party's intervention". "The Chinese Communist Party's attempt to interfere with Taiwan's democratic operation is evident and clear," it said. "Recall in Taiwan is a civil right guaranteed by the constitution, and it is up to the people of Taiwan to decide who should or should not be removed from office." China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment. It has also not responded to questions submitted last week by Reuters about the recall and whether China was seeking to interfere in the outcome. The recall campaign has been happening against a backdrop of China ramping up its own military and diplomatic pressure campaign against Taiwan to assert territorial claims that Taiwan resolutely rejects.
