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Judicial Yuan president and vice president approved

President Tsai's nominees win vote at Legislative Yuan

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Judicial Yuan president and vice president approved

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The Legislative Yuan on Tuesday approved President Tsai Ing-wen’s choices for president and vice president of the Judicial Yuan despite opposition complaints.

Former Grand Justice Hsu Tzong-li received 72 votes in favor of him becoming top official of the judicial branch of government and three against in a procedure Tuesday morning where a simple majority of 57 votes out of 113 lawmakers was necessary to be elected.

Supreme Court judge Tsai Chung-tun received 83 votes against two to be approved as vice president of the Judicial Yuan. The vote was secret. President Tsai’s Democratic Progressive Party won 68 seats at the Legislative Yuan in last January’s elections.

During the afternoon, five choices for judges on the Council of Grand Justices were also approved by lawmakers.

Hsu’s lower score came after opposition claims that his appointment would be unconstitutional because he already served the maximum of two terms or eight years on the Council of Grand Justices. However, others pointed out that the opposition accusations were not valid because there had been at least a four-year gap between the end of his second term and his nomination as president of the Judicial Yuan.

An earlier choice by President Tsai for the same function, Hsieh Wen-ting, was withdrawn after criticism of the official’s role in prosecutions during the Martial Law era.

As voting started Tuesday morning, opposition Kuomintang legislators refused to pick up ballots for the vote on Hsu, calling him “unconstitutional” and “the grand justice who destroys the Constitution.” They did participate in the vote for vice president though.