With an estimated 219,000 Chinese spouses in Taiwan expected to obtain the right to vote, some academics have expressed concerns over China’s influence on Taiwan’s combined presidential and legislative elections next year.
Lawmakers in 2009 amended 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), shortening the period a Chinese spouse must wait before acquiring the right to vote from eight to six years.
The Executive Yuan then lobbied for the limit to be further shortened from six to four years, in line with the period spouses of other nationalities are required to wait before being allowed to vote.
A draft bill on the proposed amendment is currently under review by legislators.
A census conducted by the National Immigration Agency, published in February, showed that with the exception of those from Hong Kong and Macau, the number of Chinese spouses stood at about 324,000 — twice the combined number of all other expatriates who arrived in the nation through marriage — of which 108,000 hold entry-and-exit permits, while 112,000 have been granted permanent residency.
By law, Chinese spouses must be married to a citizen of the Republic of China (ROC) for at least four years and live in the nation for at least six years before they can obtain a Taiwanese identification card, a criterion that has been met by 112,000 people and which about 107,000 people will soon fulfill, putting the estimated total at 219,000, the census showed.
The number of Chinese spouses eligible to vote next year will also be twice that of spouses from other nations, which will be about 112,000.
Furthermore, the number of Chinese spouses who were allowed to vote in 2008 and in 2012 was 50,000 and 90,000 respectively, indicating a trend in which the size of the demographic roughly doubles every four years.
Calling the rising prominence of Chinese spouses an obvious tactic devised by Beijing to achieve its “united front,” National Dong Hwa University professor Shih Cheng-feng (施正鋒) said the phenomenon could be worrisome in a scenario in which the outcome of an election is decided by a narrow margin of voters, as the Chinese spouses could be the determining factor.
Nanhua University professor Tung Li-wen (董立文) said he has met some Chinese spouses who expressed a great interest in politics, some of whom even formed a political party with similar political beliefs to Beijing.
Although the particular group he mentioned does not represent all Chinese spouses, local political parties must not overlook the potential threat posed by such groups, he said.
The government should be cautious when espousing shortening the term for Chinese spouses to become naturalized ROC citizens, since Taiwan and China have a special relationship.
Kaohsiung New Citizen Development Association director-general Chan Hsiu-ing (湛秀英) said the difference in the time Chinese spouses are made to wait before being granted the ROC identification card is disproportionate compared with that for those from other nations.
Chinese spouses, like everyone else, are members of families and of society, she said, adding that they do not all lean toward one political view.
The US government has signed defense cooperation agreements with Japan and the Philippines to boost the deterrence capabilities of countries in the first island chain, a report by the National Security Bureau (NSB) showed. The main countries on the first island chain include the two nations and Taiwan. The bureau is to present the report at a meeting of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee tomorrow. The US military has deployed Typhon missile systems to Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture and Zambales province in the Philippines during their joint military exercises. It has also installed NMESIS anti-ship systems in Japan’s Okinawa
‘WIN-WIN’: The Philippines, and central and eastern European countries are important potential drone cooperation partners, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung said Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) in an interview published yesterday confirmed that there are joint ventures between Taiwan and Poland in the drone industry. Lin made the remark in an exclusive interview with the Chinese-language Liberty Times (the Taipei Times’ sister paper). The government-backed Taiwan Excellence Drone International Business Opportunities Alliance and the Polish Chamber of Unmanned Systems on Wednesday last week signed a memorandum of understanding in Poland to develop a “non-China” supply chain for drones and work together on key technologies. Asked if Taiwan prioritized Poland among central and eastern European countries in drone collaboration, Lin
BACK TO WORK? Prosecutors said they are considering filing an appeal, while the Hsinchu City Government said it has applied for Ann Kao’s reinstatement as mayor The High Court yesterday found suspended Hsinchu mayor Ann Kao (高虹安) not guilty of embezzling assistant fees, reducing her sentence to six months in prison commutable to a fine from seven years and four months. The verdict acquitted Kao of the corruption charge, but found her guilty of causing a public official to commit document forgery. The High Prosecutors’ Office said it is reviewing the ruling and considering whether to file an appeal. The Taipei District Court in July last year sentenced Kao to seven years and four months in prison, along with a four-year deprivation of civil rights, for contravening the Anti-Corruption
NO CONFIDENCE MOTION? The premier said that being toppled by the legislature for defending the Constitution would be a democratic badge of honor for him Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) yesterday announced that the Cabinet would not countersign the amendments to the local revenue-sharing law passed by the Legislative Yuan last month. Cho said the decision not to countersign the amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) was made in accordance with the Constitution. “The decision aims to safeguard our Constitution,” he said. The Constitution stipulates the president shall, in accordance with law, promulgate laws and issue mandates with the countersignature of the head of the Executive Yuan, or with the countersignatures of both the head of the Executive Yuan and ministers or
RSS