The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) yesterday accused the government of attempting to control free speech on the Internet with its plans for an over-the-top media services management act.
While the National Communications Commission’s (NCC) draft version of the act would allow over-the-top media service providers to register on what the NCC has described as a “voluntary” basis, under the same act, the agency could also require mandatory registration of providers based on measures such as their number of users, revenue, amount of traffic or market influence, or for some other major public interest, the KMT said.
The draft act proposes a fine of up to NT$1 million (US$35,149) for those who do not register as requested, with the possibility of further fines, the party said.
Photo: CNA
Article 13 of the draft act states that if the NCC determines that a provider’s content is “harming national security,” or “harming public order or good morals,” the provider could be fined up to NT$1 million if corrections are not made within a specified time frame, with the possibility of further fines, the KMT added.
The proposed act would allow the government to “suppress people’s comments on the Internet,” KMT Institute of Revolutionary Practice director and Taipei City Councilor Lo Chih-chiang (羅智強) said at a news conference in Taipei.
The KMT said that if the act proposed by the NCC is implemented, “in the future, there will be no freedom of speech in Taiwan.”
KMT Culture and Communications Committee director-general Alicia Wang (王育敏) said the government should not “test the public’s limits,” as there continues to be some anger about the removal on Saturday of CTi News after the NCC rejected the channel’s application to renew its broadcasting license.
“The anger has turned into support,” she said, citing an increase in subscribers to CTi News’ YouTube channel to more than 2 million.
Instead of reflecting on the public outcry over CTi News, the government is doubling down to “further suppress opinions on the Internet,” she added.
The KMT said that it would try to block the proposed act and it urged people to “come together and help defend the basic value of freedom of speech.”
The NCC also plans to propose a digital communications act which would “expand the scope of the suppression of freedom of speech,” the KMT said.
Accusing the government of wanting to “exclude all dissident voices on the Internet,” the party said that the two proposed acts would be the equivalent of a “digital” version of the authoritarian-era Publication Act (出版法), which suppressed ideas and restricted creative freedom.
Separately yesterday, NCC Chairman Chen Yaw-shyang (陳耀祥) said that the proposed digital communications act would better regulate “inappropriate” content on online platforms and that it would not be used to censor the Internet.
The government would never engage in censorship of the Internet, as it is a free, open and innovative space, Chen said.
The NCC is still drafting the bill and would listen to the views of all parties before presenting its final version to the legislature, he said.
The NCC proposed a similar act in 2018, but the bill was not passed by lawmakers due to concerns over censorship of the Internet.
That bill covered major online social media such as Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, and would have allowed people to report misinformation and fabricated news on an online platform.
Additional reporting by CNA
‘DENIAL DEFENSE’: The US would increase its military presence with uncrewed ships, and submarines, while boosting defense in the Indo-Pacific, a Pete Hegseth memo said The US is reorienting its military strategy to focus primarily on deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, a memo signed by US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth showed. The memo also called on Taiwan to increase its defense spending. The document, known as the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” was distributed this month and detailed the national defense plans of US President Donald Trump’s administration, an article in the Washington Post said on Saturday. It outlines how the US can prepare for a potential war with China and defend itself from threats in the “near abroad,” including Greenland and the Panama
A magnitude 4.9 earthquake struck off Tainan at 11:47am today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 32.3km northeast of Tainan City Hall at a depth of 7.3km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Tainan and Chiayi County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Chiayi City and County, and Yunlin County, while it was measured as 2 in Kaohsiung, Nantou County, Changhua County, Taitung County and offshore Penghu County, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) is maintaining close ties with Beijing, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said yesterday, hours after a new round of Chinese military drills in the Taiwan Strait began. Political parties in a democracy have a responsibility to be loyal to the nation and defend its sovereignty, DPP spokesman Justin Wu (吳崢) told a news conference in Taipei. His comments came hours after Beijing announced via Chinese state media that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s Eastern Theater Command was holding large-scale drills simulating a multi-pronged attack on Taiwan. Contrary to the KMT’s claims that it is staunchly anti-communist, KMT Deputy
RESPONSE: The government would investigate incidents of Taiwanese entertainers in China promoting CCP propaganda online in contravention of the law, the source said Taiwanese entertainers living in China who are found to have contravened cross-strait regulations or collaborated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could be subject to fines, a source said on Sunday. Several Taiwanese entertainers have posted on the social media platform Sina Weibo saying that Taiwan “must be returned” to China, and sharing news articles from Chinese state media. In response, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) has asked the Ministry of Culture to investigate whether the entertainers had contravened any laws, and asked for them to be questioned upon their return to Taiwan, an official familiar with the matter said. To curb repeated