<p>Lawmakers in the Taiwanese parliament were seen shoving, tackling, and hitting each other on Friday (May 17) amid a bitter dispute about reforms to the chamber. Amid the chaotic scenes that unfolded, one lawmaker, in a bid to stop the passage of a bill took an entirely different approach as he snatched it and ran away.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Watch: Major brawl breaks out in Taiwanese parliament</strong></h2>

<p>Days before the recently elected Taiwanese President-elect Lai Ching-te from the ruling party Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which advocates Taiwan’s distinct identity and rejects China's territorial claims, is set to take office, a major brawl broke out in the parliament.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Even before the lawmakers were to vote on a controversial reform bill, some started screaming and shoving each other outside the chamber.&nbsp;</p>

<p>As the chaotic scenes unfolded, Taiwanese lawmakers surged around the speaker’s seat while others were seen leaping over tables and pulling colleagues to the floor. Several lawmakers had to reportedly be hospitalised after the incident.&nbsp;</p>

<p><em><strong>Content warning: The visuals may be disturbing to some users.&nbsp;Viewer discretion is advised. WION is not responsible for the content of the video.</strong></em></p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">BRAWL-AMENT! Taiwan's parliament descends into chaos as lawmakers throw punches. At least one has been hospitalized.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Taiw%C3%A1n?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Taiwán</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/parliament?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#parliament</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/politics?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#politics</a> <a href="https://t.co/4CPPh8GQQO">pic.twitter.com/4CPPh8GQQO</a></p>
— Truthreality (@RealityCheck191) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealityCheck191/status/1791750771522089183?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2024</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">Legislators fight in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Taiwan?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Taiwan</a>'s parliament (Legislative Yuan)<br />
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A member of Taiwan's parliament stole a bill to prevent it from being passed.<br />
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At least one deputy had to be taken to hospital with a head injury following the debate.<br />
<br />
The reason why the legislators are fighting is… <a href="https://t.co/wVL18qtzkC">pic.twitter.com/wVL18qtzkC</a></p>
— Indo-Pacific News - Geo-Politics &amp; Defense (@IndoPac_Info) <a href="https://twitter.com/IndoPac_Info/status/1791742372281454867?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2024</a></blockquote>
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<p>In the middle of the chaos, one lawmaker tried to remove the bill itself from the chamber in order to stop its passage.&nbsp;</p>

<p>A video which has since gone viral on social media shows a Taiwanese lawmaker snatching the bill and dodging multiple people, before successfully exiting the parliament.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The MP, according to Taiwanese media reports, was later identified as DPP lawmaker Kuo Kuo-wen.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">A member of Taiwan's parliament stole a bill and ran off with it to prevent it from being passed <a href="https://t.co/M2DtDtSP4t">pic.twitter.com/M2DtDtSP4t</a></p>
— Source for Viral Vids (@source4viral) <a href="https://twitter.com/source4viral/status/1791754161492545677?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 18, 2024</a></blockquote>
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<p>Lawmakers from all three parties were involved in the altercations and traded accusations about who was to blame.</p>

<h2><strong>What caused this violence and chaos?</strong></h2>

<p>While Lai won the election in January and will be inaugurated on Monday (May 20), his party, DPP lost its majority in parliament. Currently, the opposition Kuomintang (KMT), has more seats than the DPP but not enough to have a majority on its own.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Therefore, the KMT has been working with the smaller Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) to promote their mutual ideas.&nbsp;</p>

<p><strong>Also Watch |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/scuffle-breaks-out-inside-taiwans-parliament-722710">Scuffle breaks out inside Taiwan's parliament</a></strong></p>

<p>The source of contention is a bill which would grant the parliament greater scrutiny powers over the government, including a controversial proposal to criminalise officials who are deemed to make false statements in the chamber, according to Reuters.&nbsp;</p>

<p>The DPP has accused the two parties of improperly trying to force through the proposals without the customary consultation process in what the ruling party has called “an unconstitutional abuse of power”.&nbsp;</p>

<p>“Why are we opposed? We want to be able to have discussions, not for there to be only one voice in the country,” DPP lawmaker Wang Mei-hui told Reuters.&nbsp;</p>

<h2><strong>Protests outside the parliament</strong></h2>

<p>A report by Focus Taiwan reported that some 100 people gathered outside the parliament amid the brawl that broke out inside the chamber.&nbsp;</p>

<p>In a clip posted on X, demonstrators can be heard chanting “Team Taiwan!” in protest of the bill which would also reportedly give the China-friendly camp – KMT and TPP – more power.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">NOW: Hundreds of protestors outside Taiwan’s parliament shouting “Team Taiwan!” in protest against a planned bill that would give the more China-friendly camp (KMT, TPP), which has a parliamentary majority, more power.<br />
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Three days before DPP president-elect Lai’s inauguration. <a href="https://t.co/PKOUECPv2d">pic.twitter.com/PKOUECPv2d</a></p>
— Cornelius Dieckmann (@CoDieckmann) <a href="https://twitter.com/CoDieckmann/status/1791501266079908009?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 17, 2024</a></blockquote>
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<p><em>(With inputs from agencies)</em><br />
&nbsp;</p>


Lawmakers in the Taiwanese parliament were seen shoving, tackling, and hitting each other on Friday (May 17) amid a bitter dispute about reforms to the chamber. Amid the chaotic scenes that unfolded, one lawmaker, in a bid to stop the passage of a bill took an entirely different approach as he snatched it and ran away.

Lawmakers in the Taiwanese parliament were seen shoving, tackling, and hitting each other on Friday (May 17) amid a bitter dispute about reforms to the chamber. Amid the chaotic scenes that unfolded, one lawmaker, in a bid to stop the passage of a bill took an entirely different approach as he snatched it and ran away. Watch: Major brawl breaks out in Taiwanese parliament Days before the recently elected Taiwanese President-elect Lai Ching-te from the ruling party Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which advocates Taiwan’s distinct identity and rejects China's territorial claims, is set to take office, a major brawl broke out in the parliament. Even before the lawmakers were to vote on a controversial reform bill, some started screaming and shoving each other outside the chamber. As the chaotic scenes unfolded, Taiwanese lawmakers surged around the speaker’s seat while others were seen leaping over tables and pulling colleagues to the floor. Several lawmakers had to reportedly be hospitalised after the incident. Content warning: The visuals may be disturbing to some users. Viewer discretion is advised. WION is not responsible for the content of the video. BRAWL-AMENT! Taiwan's parliament descends into chaos as lawmakers throw punches. At least one has been hospitalized.#Taiwán #parliament #politics pic.twitter.com/4CPPh8GQQO — Truthreality (@RealityCheck191) May 18, 2024 × Legislators fight in #Taiwan's parliament (Legislative Yuan) A member of Taiwan's parliament stole a bill to prevent it from being passed. At least one deputy had to be taken to hospital with a head injury following the debate. The reason why the legislators are fighting is… pic.twitter.com/wVL18qtzkC — Indo-Pacific News - Geo-Politics & Defense (@IndoPac_Info) May 18, 2024 × In the middle of the chaos, one lawmaker tried to remove the bill itself from the chamber in order to stop its passage. A video which has since gone viral on social media shows a Taiwanese lawmaker snatching the bill and dodging multiple people, before successfully exiting the parliament. The MP, according to Taiwanese media reports, was later identified as DPP lawmaker Kuo Kuo-wen. A member of Taiwan's parliament stole a bill and ran off with it to prevent it from being passed pic.twitter.com/M2DtDtSP4t — Source for Viral Vids (@source4viral) May 18, 2024 × Lawmakers from all three parties were involved in the altercations and traded accusations about who was to blame. What caused this violence and chaos? While Lai won the election in January and will be inaugurated on Monday (May 20), his party, DPP lost its majority in parliament. Currently, the opposition Kuomintang (KMT), has more seats than the DPP but not enough to have a majority on its own. Therefore, the KMT has been working with the smaller Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) to promote their mutual ideas. Also Watch | Scuffle breaks out inside Taiwan's parliament The source of contention is a bill which would grant the parliament greater scrutiny powers over the government, including a controversial proposal to criminalise officials who are deemed to make false statements in the chamber, according to Reuters. The DPP has accused the two parties of improperly trying to force through the proposals without the customary consultation process in what the ruling party has called “an unconstitutional abuse of power”. “Why are we opposed? We want to be able to have discussions, not for there to be only one voice in the country,” DPP lawmaker Wang Mei-hui told Reuters. Protests outside the parliament A report by Focus Taiwan reported that some 100 people gathered outside the parliament amid the brawl that broke out inside the chamber. In a clip posted on X, demonstrators can be heard chanting “Team Taiwan!” in protest of the bill which would also reportedly give the China-friendly camp – KMT and TPP – more power. NOW: Hundreds of protestors outside Taiwan’s parliament shouting “Team Taiwan!” in protest against a planned bill that would give the more China-friendly camp (KMT, TPP), which has a parliamentary majority, more power. Three days before DPP president-elect Lai’s inauguration. pic.twitter.com/PKOUECPv2d — Cornelius Dieckmann (@CoDieckmann) May 17, 2024 × (With inputs from agencies)

Watch: Amid clashes in parliament, Taiwanese lawmaker snatches bill, runs away to stop its passage

Punches & Water Balloons were thrown inside the Taiwanese Parliament on Friday. WION's Executive Editor Palki Sharma Upadhyay gets you a report on the most infamous parliamentary brawls in history.

Gravitas: The world's biggest parliamentary brawls

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Watch: Amid clashes in parliament, Taiwanese lawmaker snatches bill, runs away to stop its passage

Gravitas: The world's biggest parliamentary brawls