Taipei is planning to crack down on illegal China-bound investments, with stricter rules and harsher penalties, according to an amended draft bill.
Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) officials confirmed the plan yesterday at its news briefing.
The penalties for those who break the law on such investment will face fines of up to NT$25 million and jail terms of up to 2-years if the bill is passed.
The amendment is expected to be sent to the legislature for review during the next legislative session, which begins in September. The bill, however, will not be retroactive, so those violating the law before it takes effect will not be punished.
Seeking to more effectively manage China-bound investment, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) and the MAC are jointly seeking to amend related articles in the Statute Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (兩岸人民關係條例).
Under current rules, people who wish to invest in China must obtain permission from the government. At the moment, violations bring fines of NT$1 million to NT$5 million.
Present rules also allow for fines to accrue continuously until illegal investments are completely pulled out of China.
In addition, the new rules add criminal liabilities in cases which are not remedied after fines are imposed.
Illegal investors face no criminal sanctions at present.
The purpose of the amendment, according to MAC Vice Chairman Jonathan Liu (
"The volume of money that Taiwan's businesspeople invest in China varies widely. Some investments are small scale while others are huge. The present punishments of NT$1 million to NT$5 million are too heavy for small scale investments, but much to mild to discourage big investors," Liu said.
He added that the new criminal liabilities should help ensure the effectiveness of the regulations.
Officials from the MAC, who wish to remain anonymous, admitted yesterday that although the government plans the toughening regulations to stop illegal investments, the measure will be "hard to carry out."
"In practice, it is very difficult to find who is investing without permission. Last year, for example, there were only three or four cases uncovered and prosecuted," he said.
It is widely believed that over half of the investments in China that originate in Taiwan are made without permission.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique