KMT chair vows to oppose lifting of ban on Japanese food imports

Opposition Kuomintang (KMT) Chairwoman Hung Hsiu-chu (???) said on Sunday that the party strongly opposes the government's proposed lifting of a ban on imports of food products from radiation-affected areas of Japan and will work to check the power of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party government.

Hung said the KMT's priority in the new year is food safety and opposition to the proposed lifting of the ban on food products from four radiation-affected Japanese prefectures -- Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba.

Hung made the statement at a flag-raising ceremony in front of the party's headquarters in Taipei, attended by party vice chairmen Lin Junq-tzer (???), Hau Lung-bin (???), Chen Chen-hsiang (???) and KMT secretary-general Mo Tien-hu (???).

Taiwan banned food imports from the Japanese prefectures of Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma and Chiba in the wake of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant meltdown following a massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011.

Hung said the party should applaud Hau for advocating a national referendum on the issue in December, adding that the KMT will oppose the proposed lifting of the ban in the Legislature and at related hearings, as it continues in its efforts to collect enough signatures to secure a referendum.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel