00:00Debates are continuing over Li Zhenxiu, who in February became the first legislator with Chinese citizenship to ever take office
00:09in Taiwan.
00:11Taiwan's government has repeatedly argued she is not eligible to serve in the legislature.
00:16It has ordered that information, including classified documents, be withheld from her.
00:21And now, government officials are refusing to answer her questions in legislative sessions.
00:27They say it's illegal for them to take questions from someone serving illegally.
00:45The government says Li is ineligible because under Taiwan's laws, elected officials are not allowed to hold dual citizenship.
00:56The ruling Democratic Progressive Party government has also argued Li should not have even been allowed to run for office
01:02in the first place,
01:04saying she did not give up her Chinese household registration early enough to qualify.
01:09Xiu Chui Zheng, the head of a government agency in charge of cross-strait issues,
01:14also pointed to the national security concerns over Li's Chinese citizenship amid cross-strait tensions.
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01:39It is illegal to discuss Taiwan's laws.
01:46It's illegal to enforce secrecy.
01:52But opposition parties, as well as Li herself, have a different interpretation of Taiwan's laws.
01:59They say that since Taiwan's constitution does not treat China as a separate country,
02:04people holding Chinese citizenship shouldn't be seen as having dual citizenship.
02:09They argue Li was eligible to become a legislator and should be afforded the same rights as other lawmakers.
02:30The government had tried to remove Li from office through other means, like appealing to legislative speaker Han Guoyu.
02:38But because of a lack of consensus among political parties, Han decided that Li could stay in her position for
02:44the time being, until a court rules otherwise.
02:47So, with few other options, it appears this is how the government has decided to proceed, refusing to engage with
02:55her at all.
02:57Justin Wu and Cain's Quaranta for Taiwan Plus.
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