Taiwan lawmakers clashed on Friday over bills seen as threatening ‘democracy’. The chaotic incident saw lawmakers not only spray water on each other but also push, kick, and physically confront fellow members of the legislature.
This development follows a brawl that erupted in the Indian Parliament a day earlier. Taiwanese lawmakers clashed in the legislative house when members of President Lai Ching-te's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) entered the Parliament building on Thursday night to prevent the passing of controversial bills considered a threat to democracy.
According to Taiwanese media reports, some lawmakers were injured in the scuffle.
DPP members occupied the podium of the parliament's main chamber on December 19 and blocked the entrances. They barricaded themselves inside by piling up chairs. The move was in opposition to passing of three legal amendments proposed by the opposition bloc. It was alleged that passing of these bills would threaten democracy and hence would make it difficult for voters to oust elected officials whom they consider unfit.
In one of the photos, Taiwan opposition party Kuomintang (KMT) or Nationalist Party lawmaker Hsu Chiao-hsin was spotted attempting to break open the lock to evict DPP members from the Legislature in Taipei on Friday.
According to an AFP report, the DPP wanted to avoid passing the third reading of amendments to the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act and other controversial bills on December 20. Critics suggest that if approved and implemented, these controversial bills would paralyse the Constitutional Court.
The viral videos of the scene took the internet by storm. Lawmakers can be seen pushing and shoving each other as Nationalist members barged in en masse to take control and allow the speaker, Han Kuo-yu, to take his position. According to media reports, lawmaker Lin Chu-Yin injured her arm.
Catch all the Business News , Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.