A senior figure from Taiwan’s largest opposition party, the KMT, says the government is planning to lift a ban on imports of food products from Japan’s Fukushima region. KMT lawmaker William Tseng said the KMT had received news of the move in a statement at the legislature on Monday.
Since the middle of March 2011, Taiwan has banned the importation of food products made in parts of Japan affected by the Fukushima nuclear disaster. The ban covers food products from five Japanese prefectures. It has been a continuing source of trade friction between Japan and Taiwan ever since.
Tseng says that if the government decides to lift the ban, the KMT will deploy a number of measures to protect the health of Taiwan’s population. He says nearly 8 million voters in Taiwan supported the ban in a 2018 referendum.
Ruling party official Ker Chien-ming says history will not look kindly on the KMT if the party decides to block efforts to amend the constitution and lower the voting age in Taiwan to 18.
Tseng has responded by saying the KMT supports amendments to the constitution and will not boycott the issue on account of food imports.