DHARAMSHALA, MARCH 19: In an unprecedented turn of events, at least 300 students and activists against a trade deal with China have stormed the Taiwanese parliament late Tuesday demanding a public review of the deal.
The protesters say the trade deal with China would hurt Taiwan’s economy and make it vulnerable to pressure from Beijing. Many say that Taiwan’s ruling KMT party strong-armed the controversial trade deal with China, Taiwan’s biggest trading partner.
The opposition had accused the ruling Kuomintang Party of breaking its promise to review the agreement on a clause-by-clause basis. The deal was signed in June 2013 but has not yet been ratified by the Parliament.
Ties between China and Taiwan have improved in the recent years but the man credited for it, the incumbent president Ma Ying-jeou has become hugely unpopular, according to media reports from Taiwan. (as of September 2013, his approval rating was 9.2%).
The trade agreement would allow China to invest in 64 service sectors in Taiwan, including advertising, retail, print, automobile and telecom. According to buzzfeed.com, the ruling KMT party argues that it benefits Taiwanese conglomerates and, by extension, Taiwan’s lagging economy. Opponents, however, say it allows China to threaten Taiwan’s democracy and small businesses by mass immigration and investment.
Meanwhile, the ruling KMT party accuses the Democratic Progressive Party of rallying anti-China sentiments against the trade agreement.
China claims Taiwan as its territory where the Tibetan leader Dalai Lama last visited in 2009 to pray for the victims of the typhoon morakot that left over 600 people dead. Beijing condemned the visit blaming the opposition Democratic Progressive Party for the move that could “sabotage improving ties” between the two sides.
The invitation for the visit reportedly came from the leaders of seven southern cities who belong to the opposition Democratic Progressive Party, which promotes formal independence for Taiwan.
Taiwan denied the Tibetan leader entry to the island in 2012 to attend an event organized by the Federation of Business and Professional Women, headed by former vice president Annette Lu.
