The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has released new guidelines advising government employees visiting Hong Kong and Macau not to take part in any activity that could be construed as contravening the Chinese territories’ new national security law.
Officials from the Executive Yuan and its affiliated organizations or agencies should also refrain from making comments deemed illegal by the territories’ governments and not visit “banned areas,” the council said.
The council recently amended the Regulations for Executive Yuan and Affiliated Organizations and Agencies on Visiting Hong Kong or Macau (行政院及所屬各機關(構)人員赴香港或澳門注意事項) following the Hong Kong government’s passage in March of the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, commonly known as Article 23.
Photo: AP
According to an unnamed source, the Executive Yuan has notified ministries and agencies that the amendment takes effect immediately.
The amendment urges government officials traveling to Hong Kong or Macau to attend events or meetings to plan their trips carefully, avoid discussing sensitive matters, and assess and form contingency plans regarding possible risks.
Government officials can solicit the opinions of the council if necessary, the statement said.
Officials should observe standing regulations and refrain from taking official files unrelated to the events or meetings they would attend in Hong Kong or Macau, and ensure that any cellphones or laptops they carry contain only information about those events or meetings, the statement said.
Officials traveling to Hong Kong or Macau should, in principle, take planes or ships operated by Taiwanese companies whether on official business or not, the amendment states.
During their stay in Hong Kong or Macau, government officials should refrain from speaking or acting in ways which the local governments would consider illegal.
Additionally, they should not stray close to “banned areas” as defined by the national security laws.
Article 23 states that any acts of espionage, defined as infiltrating, coming near to or investigating “banned areas,” either in person or via uncrewed vehicles, or attempts to intercept communications to obtain directly or indirectly helpful information benefiting foreign forces, could be punishable by imprisonment for 20 years.
Banned areas are defined as military or national defense-related areas within the Hong Kong and Macau regions, areas that the Garrison Law designate as off-limits military areas, or locations and transportation facilities that the local governments occupy for military or national defense purposes.
Officials are also advised to be cautious, travel in groups and not visit areas with known protests or processions or enter questionable facilities alone, the council said.
If officials experience any attempts by the Chinese authorities to detain, arrest, restrict their freedom of movement, search or interrogate them, they should contact the MAC Hong Kong or Macau office for assistance, the council said.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS