Premier Responds to Opposition Concerns on Military Tribunals

TaiwanPlus News

Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai responded to criticism from opposition lawmakers regarding President Lai Ching-te's call for a return of military tribunals. Kuomintang lawmaker Chiu Chen-chun likened Lai's statement to a dictatorship. Cho responded by saying amendments to military laws that would reestablish tribunals would follow legislative procedure.

Transcript

00:00Taiwan's premier has responded to concerns about President Lai Ching-tung's call to bring

00:04back military tribunals.

00:06If we, the Chinese Communist Party, say a word, we will resume military trials.

00:12Isn't this dictatorship?

00:13Of course not.

00:14Military trials, I am explaining, are five types of military crimes against the military

00:19personnel.

00:20Rebellion, setting an example, espionage, abolition of duty, and resistance to orders.

00:24Military personnel cannot have these five behaviors.

00:27President Lai announced several new initiatives last week to address Chinese infiltration

00:35of Taiwan.

00:36Military tribunals were used to impose harsher punishments on soldiers who commit crimes

00:41that endanger national security, but they were abolished a decade ago due to human rights

00:46concerns.

00:47If the Lai administration follows through with its push for their return, any amendments

00:51will have to pass through the opposition-controlled legislature.

00:55In response, the opposition Kuomintang announced plans to put forward referendums against martial

01:01law and the abolition of the death penalty, which Premier Zhuo also responded to earlier

01:06in the day.

01:07Only the Chinese Kuomintang has the experience of martial law, and only the Chinese Kuomintang

01:15does not know the pain of martial law, and there is no possibility of martial law today.

01:22For more UN videos visit www.un.org

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