KMT lawmakers to revise law on defensive referendums

The announcement came after claims that President Chen Shui-bian might resort to a defensive referendum if the KMT and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) fail to reach a consensus before today on two upcoming referendums supporting the country’s bid to join the United Nations.

Friday is the legal deadline for proposing a new referendum.

The DPP recently called on the KMT to support each other’s U.N. bid referendums due to concern that the referendums, to be held alongside the March 22 presidential polls, might fail.

The U.N. bid referendums will mark the third time the government has held a referendum, even though neither of the earlier ones passed the threshold of voter interest.

According to the Referendum Act, the passage of a referendum requires votes from a majority of the electorate and for over 50 percent of those ballots to be “yes” votes.

In their referendums, both parties support U.N. membership for the country, but they disagree on what name the country should use in its membership applications.

The DPP-proposed referendum backs using the name Taiwan, while the KMT one advocates use of Republic of China, or another “suitable” name.

Opposing the president’s use of a defensive referendum, the KMT lawmakers said the party has listed its own amendment to the Referendum Act as a priority bill.

The amendment, which will abolish an article of the Referendum Act governing the use of defensive referendums, is aimed at barring such a referendum from being “abused,” the lawmakers claimed.

The amendment is part of the 59 priority bills that the KMT vowed to pass in the first session of the new 113-seat legislature, according to the lawmakers.

The priority bills will focus on boosting the economy, providing care for the disadvantaged, improving electoral rights, clean politics, legislative reforms, energy saving, government restructuring, educational development and financial reforms.

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