Taiwanese businesspeople in China whom Beijing perceives as independence-leaning or not choosing sides might face national security charges under its “common prosperity” policy, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in a recent report.
The council commissioned experts to study the impact of the “common prosperity” policy on Taiwanese businesspeople in China and to provide suggestions.
The policy aims to promote and perfect the “third distribution system,” which would inevitably increase the operating costs and risks for Taiwanese businesses in China, the report said.
Photo: Chung Li-hua, Taipei Times
The third distribution, followed by the first, driven by the market and the second, driven by the government, is a social responsibilities-driven distribution to reduce the income gap.
The first distribution is to protect and increase wages as well as encourage labor-management negotiations regarding wages, which would affect the operating performance and willingness of Taiwanese businesses to invest, it said.
Beijing is likely to introduce the fourth phase of its tax reform this year, requiring businesses to disclose revenues along with the salaries of Taiwanese for auditing, it said.
If Beijing continues to introduce new taxable items, it could affect Taiwanese businesspeople’s willingness to invest, it said, adding that they might face probes over tax fraud that put their personal safety at risk.
The policy might also be used by Chinese local governments to determine the political leanings of Taiwanese businesspeople and their stance on Taiwanese independence, it said.
From now on, Taiwanese businesspeople’s compliance with Chinese policies might be judged by their political stance, words, deeds and personal connections, rather than their capabilities to run businesses, it said.
Under the “common prosperity” policy, Chinese governments at all levels might consider personal opinions and business networks of Taiwanese businesspeople to have national security ramifications and press charges, it said.
Taiwanese businesspeople who are deemed pro-independence or supported both Taiwanese independence and unification with China to hedge their bets might be charged under the National Security Law or the Criminal Law, it said.
The policy might also be used as a tool in business dispute mediations to attack business
competitors, it said.
The study suggested that Taiwanese businesspeople heed their words and deeds as well as gather information on the tendencies of Chinese local governments.
They should also comprehensively examine whether any aspect of their industry might be at odds with the policy and related regulations, it added.
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