The fight broke out Friday when opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party members threw pig skin and intestines at their fellow lawmakers to stop Premier Su Tseng-chang of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) from taking questions, according to the self-ruled island’s state broadcaster, Central News Agency. Some members then briefly exchanged blows.
Footage from the Legislative Yuan showed offal lying on the parliament’s red floor, and on some lawmakers’ clothes.
The controversy was over Tawianese President Tsai Ing-wen’s decision to allow imports of US pork containing ractopamine, an animal feed additive that is banned in a number of countries including China, and the European Union.
DPP leader Tsai announced in August that the imports would be allowed from January 1, 2021.
Ahead of the premier’s speech on Friday, Tsai posted on her Facebook page, emphasizing that Taiwan is a free market.
“I know that there are different opinions in our country, but this is a problem that any political party must face,” she wrote. “The import of American pork and beef is to have more choice on the market, people are not forced to eat it.”
This story has been updated to clarify the proposal to parliament.
You may also like
-
UK coronavirus variant has been reported in 86 countries, WHO says
-
NASA technology can help save whale sharks says Australian marine biologist and ECOCEAN founder, Brad Norman
-
California Twentynine Palms: Explosives are missing from the nation’s largest Marine Corps base and an investigation is underway
-
Trump unhappy with his impeachment attorney’s performance, sources say
-
Lunar New Year 2021: Ushering in the Year of the Ox