The Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF) yesterday urged China to look into its own hacking of Taiwan's radio waves, saying that cross-strait telecommunications should be regulated by both Taiwan and China.
The SEF's comments came after Beijing claimed Falun Gong members had hijacked Chinese television broadcasts from Taipei.
The Mainland Affairs Council and Falun Gong's Taiwan branch, meanwhile, said yesterday that China should show evidence to prove its accusation.
"Taiwan's radio waves have been hacked by China's radio waves for a long time, but China has just ignored the issue. This incident reflects the need for cross-strait telecommunications to be regulated by both sides," SEF Secretary-General Shi Hwai-yow (許惠祐) told reporters.
Shi said that the SEF has raised the issue of telecommunications with China repeatedly, but Beijing has refused to respond.
"We'll inform China of our investigation result. But China has to at least do something about the issue," Shi added.
The telecommunications department of the Ministry of Transportation and Communications also urged a dialogue on the matter.
"The two sides should establish channels to crack down on illegal telecommunications activity as soon as possible," the department said.
China's Taiwan Affairs Office on Wednesday accused Taiwan of cooperating with Falun Gong members to hack into its TV satellite system, saying Taiwan's actions had damaged cross-strait relations.
Taiwan's telecommunications officials said there was no evidence to support China's claim.
A high-ranking official from the Mainland Affairs Council, speaking on condition of anonymity, said China should produce evidence to support its claims.
"If China can't produce evidence to support its accusation, we can only conclude that it is making empty accusations against Taiwan," the official said.
Falun Gong's Taiwan branch, meanwhile, called on Beijing to face up to its record on the movement.
"China should show us what was broadcast on its TV stations, which will testify as to how it has destroyed Falun Gong in the past three years," said Chang Ching-his (張清溪), the branch's leader and a professor of economics at National Taiwan University.
Chang added that he doesn't think the affair would damage cross-strait relations since "the incident was obviously communicating facts to Chinese society."
The Falun Gong's Web site, Minghui Net, said that the material broadcast during the hacking incident stated that Chinese President Jiang Zemin (
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
Taiwan and Thailand have signed an agreement to promote and protect bilateral investment and trade, the Executive Yuan’s Office of Trade Negotiations (OTN) said on Friday. The agreement on “Promotion and Protection of Investments” was signed by Representative to Thailand Chang Chun-fu (張俊福) and Thailand Trade and Economic Office in Taipei executive director Narong Boonsatheanwong on Thursday, the OTN said in a news release. Thailand has become the fifth trading partner to sign an investment agreement with Taiwan since 2016, following earlier agreements with the Philippines, India, Vietnam and Canada, the OTN said. The deal marks a significant milestone in the development of
The entire Alishan Forest Railway line is to reopen for the first time in 15 years on Saturday, with tickets to go on sale at 2pm today. The historic railway from Chiayi to Alishan (阿里山) is finally set to reopen after the completion of the final No. 42 tunnel, Alishan Forest Railway and Cultural Heritage Office Deputy Director-General Chou Heng-kai (周恆凱) said. It is to run on a new timetable, with four trains daily, he said. The 9am train is to depart from Chiayi Railway Station bound for Shizilu Station (十字路), while the 10am train departing from Chiayi is to go all the
The coast guard drove away 567 Chinese boats and seized seven illegally operating in Taiwanese waters in the first six months of this year, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said yesterday. They mostly operated near Kinmen and Penghu counties, resulting in fines totaling NT$1.7 million (US$52,440), it said. Three ships — two near Kinmen County and one near Penghu County — were detained in January for illegally crossing the border, while one ship each was detained near Kinmen in February and Penghu in March respectively, it said. The ship seized near Penghu in January was the Yun Ao (雲澳), detained by the CGA’s