Taiwan’s opposition-controlled legislature has disregarded massive protests to pass controversial laws seen as favorable to China.

On Tuesday, the opposition nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) and the smaller Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) pushed through the legislation. These laws give lawmakers the authority to require the president to provide regular reports to parliament and answer questions from lawmakers. They also criminalize contempt of parliament by government officials.

Critics argue the legislation is vague and lacks the necessary checks and balances to prevent abuse.

The bill increases the legislature’s control over budgets, including defense spending.

Additionally, the legislature can now demand that the military, private companies or individuals disclose information deemed relevant by parliamentarians, raising concerns about national security.

The opposition parties, seen as more friendly to Beijing—which claims Taiwan and has not ruled out using force for unification—gained a single-seat majority in the legislature after the January elections. Meanwhile, William Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won the presidency and was sworn in last week.

DPP legislators accuse KMT and TPP deputies of undermining Taiwan’s democracy, arguing the reforms were pushed through without proper consultation and are either vague or represent an overreach of power.

“You can seize parliament, but you cannot seize public opinion,” DPP parliament leader Ker Chien-ming said in an address to the chamber, adding that Beijing had influenced Taiwanese politics.