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Protesters Halt Lawmakers' Bid to Oust Chen Shui-bian
An alliance of opposition Taiwan lawmakers Saturday temporarily suspended review of legislation aimed at "President" Chen Shui-bian's potential ouster after thousands of demonstrators gathered outside the Legislative Yuan.
Legislation that would have established a formal procedure for removing Chen from office was set aside so legislators could instead review a special Act providing relief to victims of last year's September 21 earthquake that killed more than 4,000.
But review of that legislation was also halted after several lawmakers were stuck in their offices across the street from "parliament".
At the same time, rioters clashed with police in front of the Kaohsiung office of Legislative Yuan Speaker Wang Jin-pyng.
The rioters, mostly supporters of radical pro-independence groups, accused the Kaohsiung-elected legislator of betraying Taiwan by collaborating in moves against the "President".
In Taipei, the New Party's Lai Shyh-pao said: "We weren't able to continue proceedings because of the loud [protesters] outside." "The three opposition parties are urging Chen to restrain his supporters and restore the democratic process of government."
Mr Lai said the legislation would probably be brought up for review when the legislature convened again on Tuesday.
Chen, a member of the Democratic Progressive Party, sparked angry protests in the legislature after "Premier" Chang Chun-hsiung announced last Friday that construction of a part-built nuclear power plant worth US$5.5 billion would be halted.
Competing proposals seeking Chen's ouster continued to gain support in the legislature, as the three opposition parties - Kuomintang, People First Party (PFP) and New Party - gathered more than 140 signatures among the body's 221 lawmakers.
But special legislation would need to be passed outlining the procedure to be followed. Some backed US-style impeachment proceedings, while others wanted to enact a traditional recall ballot, which would require a public vote to determine Chen's fate.
Also Saturday, top officials from the three opposition parties gathered to discuss their next move. "We ask Chen to recognise the reality that opposition parties control the legislature," KMT secretary-general Lin Feng-cheng said.
"The Government's policies have made people feel uneasy, even very painful," PFP secretary-general Chung Jung-chi said.
The New Party's representative at the meeting, lawmaker Lee Ping-nan, vented his anger at the demonstrators. "I want to ask the new Government, are you re-thinking this yet? Who started this political storm? Who abused their authority, starting this political crisis?" Mr Lee asked
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