The Executive Yuan yesterday approved a draft act authorizing military personnel to use their weapons to defend a base against trespassers and imposing prison sentences for spying on restricted military sites with drones.
Defense officials proposed the law to bolster the security of military bases and sites after legal reviews found current regulations to be insufficient, the Ministry of National Defense told a news briefing.
Intrusion by drones into restricted space, trespassing by civilians into bases and assault on guards have occurred in the past, it said.
Photo courtesy of the Military News Agency
The proposed legislation suggests authorizing guards to use weapons and other implements to prevent unauthorized entry into military bases and intrusion into restricted airspace by uncrewed aerial vehicles, the ministry said.
Committing theft in crucial military facilities, causing damage to these facilities or endangering their security would result in a sentence of one to seven years in prison and a fine of up to NT$10 million (US$311,410), it said.
Carrying out these acts with an intent to impede or interfere with national security would result in a sentence of three to 10 years in prison and a fine of no more than NT$50 million, the ministry said.
If death occurs as a result of such acts, the penalty would be further increased to seven years to life in prison and a fine of up to NT$100 million, it said.
A penalty of five to 12 years in prison and a fine of up to NT$80 million is stipulated in cases where such acts led to serious injuries, the ministry said.
Jeopardizing the normal operation of core informational systems of military bases would lead to a sentence of one to seven years in prison in addition to a NT$10 million fine, it said.
Unauthorized surveying, recording or description of military facilities with the aid of drones is punishable by a sentence of up to three years in prison, the ministry said.
Compromising a military base’s security by surveying, recording or describing it from outside the restricted area would be punishable by a fine of NT$300,000 to NT$500,000.
The proposed law would apply to crucial military facilities, bases of military units and organizations, or any legally formed restricted area in which military exercises or training is being conducted, it said.
Attempts to intimidate or blackmail service members guarding a military base or other restricted area would be punishable by a sentence of no more than three years in prison commutable to a NT$300,000 fine, the ministry said.
Entering into restricted military areas would result in a NT$40,000 to NT$200,000 fine for each count of trespass, it added.
In related news, the Executive Yuan also approved amendments to the Domestic Violence Prevention Act (家庭暴力防治法) and Sports Industry Development Act (運動產業發展條例).
The changes to the law against domestic violence would require social media platforms and Internet service providers to remove or restrict access to sexual recordings of domestic abuse victims upon being notified by authorities.
Platforms and service providers that fail to remove or restrict access to such material after being notified to do so would be subjected to a repeatable fine of NT$60,000 to NT$600,000.
Proposed changes to the sports law would punish scalpers of sports events with a fine of 10 to 50 times the original ticket value, while large-volume scalping could result in a prison sentence of up to three years.
A fine of no more than NT$3 million could be added to the latter type of breach or used to commute the prison sentence.
‘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
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
A wild live dugong was found in Taiwan for the first time in 88 years, after it was accidentally caught by a fisher’s net on Tuesday in Yilan County’s Fenniaolin (粉鳥林). This is the first sighting of the species in Taiwan since 1937, having already been considered “extinct” in the country and considered as “vulnerable” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. A fisher surnamed Chen (陳) went to Fenniaolin to collect the fish in his netting, but instead caught a 3m long, 500kg dugong. The fisher released the animal back into the wild, not realizing it was an endangered species at
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
RSS