Taiwan MPs brawl in parliament

A brawl has broken out in the Taiwanese parliament as a heated debate about election-related issues descended into disarray.The 14-hour discussion took place on the last day of a conference held in parliament to discuss whether a referendum should be combined with next year's election and if the legislative and presidential elections should be held at the same time.Despite the two major parties agreeing on some points, a dispute broke out with microphones being broken and members being pushed and shoved.The session was eventually dismissed, with some blaming legislative speaker, Wang Jin-pyng for his inability to maintain order in parliament, but the Nationalist presidential candidate, Ma Yin-jeou, gave him his support."Speaker Wang has little choice, whenever in a situation like this, all the possibility to continue proceeding are hindered. A ruling party who boycotts a bill by boycotting a parliamentary session is unacceptable," said Ma.Wang expressed his frustration with the situation: "We are never afraid to battle for a bill, but when we proceed to vote, they pull out microphones."Mayhem in Taiwan's parliament is not unusual. In previous sessions, legislators have thrown books, shoes and lunch boxes at each other.© Independent Television News Limited 2007. All rights reserved.

ITN | July 21, 2007

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