TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Legislative Yuan committee on Wednesday passed a motion condemning Beijing over allegations that it pressured three African countries to revoke overflight and landing permits for President Lai Ching-te’s (賴清德) planned trip to Eswatini, leading to the postponement of the visit.
During a meeting of the Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee, seven DPP lawmakers introduced a motion condemning China for its “coercion of third countries to revoke flight permissions for Taiwan’s head of state,” per CNA. DPP Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) said China’s use of economic means to force a third country to revoke flight permits is a matter of national sovereignty.
Shen said China has clearly intervened in sovereign acts, and that the move violates the UN Charter principles of sovereign equality and noninterference, as well as the Chicago Convention’s international civil aviation order and non-discrimination principles. He said China’s obstruction and suppression of Taiwan’s diplomacy should be strongly condemned.
KMT Legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin (徐巧芯) said she had no objection to the motion, as Lai’s visit to friendly nations was in accordance with established procedures, per CNA. However, she raised a procedural issue, noting that the committee was reviewing the Veterans Affairs Council’s annual budget and that officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were not present.
Normally, when a committee handles a motion, it would ask the relevant ministries whether the wording needs to be amended, Hsu said. She said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs should be allowed to express its opinion on the motion.
DPP lawmaker Lin Chu-yin (林楚茵) responded that the motion was not an implementation or amendment proposal and did not require the Cabinet to take corrective action, according to CNA. She said the motion’s target was China and reflected the legislators’ position.
Lin added that it aimed to demonstrate loyalty to the state and the president, and to respond to China’s “bullying.” She said the wording was appropriate and that objections were attempts to block the motion from being publicized through procedural means.
DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) said that when facing Chinese pressure, all parties should take a unified position, CNA reported. He criticized China’s so-called goodwill, saying it is either a deception or an attempt to mislead Taiwan.
He said China’s pressure on Taiwan is continuous, and noted that presidential visits to Eswatini have precedent. He said China’s pressure on three African countries was a typical case of interference in other countries’ internal affairs.
After discussion between ruling and opposition lawmakers, committee chair and DPP Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) asked whether there were objections to the motion. As no objections were raised, the motion was passed as proposed.
