A Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker yesterday proposed an amendment that would impose fines on Taiwanese who work with Chinese political groups to undermine national dignity, in response to recent cases of online influencers posting pro-China content.
Legislator Chiu Chih-wei’s (邱志偉) proposed amendment to the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) would fine people NT$50,000 for collaborating with groups affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to publish content that threatens Taiwan’s existence or seeks to overthrow its democratic freedoms.
Current regulations are too broad and only impose penalties for collaborating with the CCP, Chiu said, adding that Taiwanese who travel to China are restricted from subverting national security, but can “echo” CCP propaganda.
Photo: Fang Wei-li, Taipei Times
His proposed amendment would clarify what type of behavior is off-limits for those who travel to China, including cooperating with political, military or administrative units that threaten Taiwan’s existence.
Advocating to overthrow or change Taiwan’s democratic Constitution would also be restricted, he added.
The penalties stipulated in Article 91 of the act, which currently start below NT$10,000, must also be increased to bolster deterrence, he said.
The penalties should be applied for each contravention of the law to avoid ambiguity or evasion of punishment, he added.
Several other lawmakers also support the amendment, Chiu said, adding that a draft has already been sent to the Legislative Yuan.
Clearer laws are easier to follow, Chiu said, adding that Taiwan must reaffirm its sovereignty and not allow China to take advantage of any opportunity to endanger the country and its government.
Taiwan is stepping up plans to create self-sufficient supply chains for combat drones and increase foreign orders from the US to counter China’s numerical superiority, a defense official said on Saturday. Commenting on condition of anonymity, the official said the nation’s armed forces are in agreement with US Admiral Samuel Paparo’s assessment that Taiwan’s military must be prepared to turn the nation’s waters into a “hellscape” for the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Paparo, the commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command, reiterated the concept during a Congressional hearing in Washington on Wednesday. He first coined the term in a security conference last
Prosecutors today declined to say who was questioned regarding alleged forgery on petitions to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislators, after Chinese-language media earlier reported that members of the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Youth League were brought in for questioning. The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau confirmed that two people had been questioned, but did not disclose any further information about the ongoing investigation. KMT Youth League members Lee Hsiao-liang (李孝亮) and Liu Szu-yin (劉思吟) — who are leading the effort to recall DPP caucus chief executive Rosalia Wu (吳思瑤) and Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) — both posted on Facebook saying: “I
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat. Lee said today that this is a serious
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
RSS