In response to the proposed enactment of the Legislative Yuan’s exercise of powers act, among other legislative actions, by the blue and white legislators of the Republic of China’s Legislative Yuan, the National Bar Association (NBA) issued a statement on the 18th, urging lawmakers to engage in substantive discussions and deliberations, and not to undermine the operation of democratic constitutionalism with partisan interests.
The NBA’s statement released on the evening of the 18th pointed out that, regarding the passage by the Legislative Yuan on May 17, 2024, of four cases including the Legislative Yuan’s exercise of powers act, the crime of disrespecting the parliament under the Criminal Code, and three special budgets totaling over 2 trillion NT dollars for the transportation in eastern Taiwan, the NBA, based on its mission to safeguard human rights, promote social justice, and advance democratic rule of law, issued the following appeal in response to this controversy:
The statement emphasized that the purpose of the constitution is to establish state organs so that each constitutional body can fulfill its constitutional functions. According to Article 63 of the Constitution: “The Legislative Yuan has the power to decide on laws, budgets, martial law, amnesty, declaration of war, treaties, and other important national matters,” in accordance with the “decision” procedure stipulated in Article 63 of the Constitution, the Legislative Yuan must first “discuss” before “decide” (refer to the dissenting opinion of Justice Yang Chien-hua in Constitutional Interpretation No. 342 of the Constitutional Court). In other words, the Legislative Yuan must engage in “discussion” procedures before passing laws and budgets, in order to make a “decision.”
The statement also pointed out that, however, the Legislative Yuan failed to conduct substantive discussions and examinations on the Legislative Yuan’s exercise of powers act, the crime of disrespecting the parliament under the Criminal Code, and the three special budget items totaling over 2 trillion NT dollars for transportation in eastern Taiwan, before forcibly proceeding to the plenary vote. By not properly fulfilling its constitutional functions of legislating laws and budgets on behalf of the people, the Legislative Yuan has obviously failed to play its part. This not only undermines the foundations of Taiwan as a democratic country but also runs counter to the basic principles of democratic constitutionalism and popular sovereignty, to which the NBA strongly condemns.
The NBA pointed out that the Legislative Yuan’s exercise of powers act, the crime of disrespecting the parliament under the Criminal Code, and the three special budget items totaling over 2 trillion NT dollars have a profound impact on the constitutional order between constitutional bodies and also involve significant national financial planning that greatly affects the people. Therefore, the NBA strongly urges the Legislative Yuan to adhere to constitutional principles such as due process and to engage in substantive discussions and deliberations on relevant bills, without compromising the operational principles of democratic constitutionalism for the sake of partisan interests.
The NBA expressed that the parliament is a manifestation of public opinion, and legislators have a responsibility to actively participate in substantive deliberations with their constituents. The effective functioning of the parliament depends on the substantive discussions and deliberations of the legislators, which are the cornerstone of the operation of the democratic constitutional system. The democratic constitutional system is Taiwan’s pride and the shared belief of the people in this land. The NBA firmly believes in the resilience of Taiwan’s democracy and hopes that the Legislative Yuan will fulfill its constitutional duty and legislate appropriately.