The legislative caucuses of three parties yesterday reiterated calls to amend a law governing relations with Hong Kong to elucidate steps the government could take to help protesters there.
The Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the New Power Party (NPP) said that they have separately created draft amendments to Article 18 of the Act Governing Relations with Hong Kong and Macau (香港澳門關係條例).
The article requires the government to aid Hong Kongers who face political persecution, but does not specify a specific course of action.
Photo: Lin Liang-sheng, Taipei Times
The KMT’s proposal, which would create a way for Hong Kongers with criminal records who are believed to be victims of political persecution to be allowed to enter Taiwan, was submitted by KMT Legislator Charles Chen (陳以信).
Individuals with criminal records would normally be required to apply for special permission to enter Taiwan, and entry without permission is punishable by up to three years in prison and a fine of up to NT$90,000, according to Article 74 of the Immigration Act (入出國及移民法).
The KMT’s amendment would exclude Hong Kongers from Article 74.
It was necessary for the amendment to address entry into Taiwan, as this is not covered by the laws governing Hong Kong, Chen said, adding that the change must be stipulated so that Taiwan can effectively provide emergency help to Hong Kongers.
The proposal would be ready for review by Friday at the earliest, he said.
Chen said he still hopes that full democracy would be implemented in Hong Kong.
Separately, NPP caucus whip Chiu Hsien-chih (邱顯智) said that his party finished its proposed amendment at the end of last month and was waiting for the draft to be reviewed.
An amendment is crucial, as the situation in Hong Kong is becoming “increasingly dangerous,” and there will likely be a spike in the number of people seeking help from Taiwan, Chiu said.
Hong Kongers and people from Macau who, because of their political views, expressions or the community they belong to, come under threat in the territories should be offered political protection, he said, adding that the NPP draft says that they would be eligible to apply for protection through rules governing political asylum seekers.
Chiu called on Legislative Speaker You Si-kun (游錫堃) to convene a cross-party caucus meeting as soon as possible to discuss the NPP proposal and to issue a joint statement denouncing the Chinese Communist Party’s planned implementation of a national security law in Hong Kong.
Meanwhile, TPP caucus whip Lai Hsiang-ling (賴香伶) said that the TPP completed a proposal on May 15 and that it had already passed one reading.
The TPP supports the democracy movement in Hong Kong, Lai said.
Echoing statements from the other parties, she said an amendment was urgently needed to bolster the government’s efforts to help protesters in Hong Kong.
Taiwan is to commence mass production of the Tien Kung (天弓, “Sky Bow”) III, IV and V missiles by the second quarter of this year if the legislature approves the government’s NT$1.25 trillion (US$39.78 billion) special defense budget, an official said yesterday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, a defense official with knowledge of the matter said that the advanced systems are expected to provide crucial capabilities against ballistic and cruise missiles for the proposed “T-Dome,” an advanced, multi-layered air defense network. The Tien Kung III is an air defense missile with a maximum interception altitude of 35km. The Tien Kung IV and V
The disruption of 941 flights in and out of Taiwan due to China’s large-scale military exercises was no accident, but rather the result of a “quasi-blockade” used to simulate creating the air and sea routes needed for an amphibious landing, a military expert said. The disruptions occurred on Tuesday and lasted about 10 hours as China conducted live-fire drills in the Taiwan Strait. The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said the exercises affected 857 international flights and 84 domestic flights, affecting more than 100,000 travelers. Su Tzu-yun (蘇紫雲), a research fellow at the government-sponsored Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said the air
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
RSS