TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Legislative Speaker Han Kuo-yu (韓國瑜) on Friday expressed regret over criminal charges stemming from physical altercations in the legislature.
The Taipei District Prosecutors Office indicted seven KMT legislators — Hsieh Lung-chieh (謝龍介), Liao Wei-hsiang (廖偉翔), Chiu Chen-chun (邱鎮軍), Huang Chien-hao (黃健豪), Huang Ren (黃仁), Wang Hung-wei (王鴻薇) and Chen Yu-jen (陳玉珍) — and three DPP legislators, Lin Shu-fen (林淑芬), Lin Chu-yin (林楚茵) and Ker Chien-ming (柯建銘), per Tai Sounds.
The indictments mark one of the largest batches of such cases in Taiwan’s legislative history. The charges stem from a series of clashes in the Legislative Yuan when lawmakers jostled for control of the speaker’s podium and access to the chamber.
Commenting on the case, Han said he regretted that the disputes had escalated into lawsuits and that he had privately urged lawmakers to withdraw their complaints, per NOWNews. He said neither occupying the podium nor engaging in physical confrontations help advance legislation.
Han called on lawmakers to resolve disputes within the legislature and replace confrontation with dialogue.
DPP Legislator Lin Yueh-chin (林月琴) said she would press ahead with legal action, arguing that Chen Yu-jen’s remarks equating physical confrontation with freedom of speech showed a lack of remorse, per Liberty Times. Chen said she would comment on the case after her grandmother’s funeral.
Lin Chu-yin accused Wang of initiating the altercation, while Wang said she would seek justice through the courts, per UDN.
Chiu accused the DPP of attempting to silence the opposition through litigation, saying KMT lawmakers had also been injured in the clashes but chose not to file complaints. Huang Ren said he was trying to block DPP Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) from reaching the podium and denied making physical contact.
Hsieh Lung-chieh defended his colleagues, saying they would not have resorted to physical confrontation if normal legislative debate had been sufficient to defend their position.
The conflicts arose from the legislative process concerning amendments to the Public Officials Election and Recall Act and the Law Governing the Legislative Yuan’s Power, per The Reporter. Arguing that the former deprived citizens of voting rights and the latter excessively expanded legislative authority, the DPP petitioned the Constitutional Court for review.
While the Constitutional Court has yet to rule on the recall act amendments, it struck down most of the revisions to the law governing legislative power as unconstitutional. The decision, however, was far from unanimous, with several justices issuing dissenting opinions.
Some scholars said the court has been inconsistent in its approach to the legislature’s investigative powers, noting that it characterized refusal to testify as a matter of political responsibility rather than a legal obligation. Others argued that political disputes arising from the legislation are unlikely to subside.
