The PRC government may in the future apply its proposed anti-subversion law in Hong Kong to stop covert activities of Taiwan's official agencies, over which there has been a tacit agreement for decades between the governments of Hong Kong and Taiwan, a national security official said.
World attention has focused on how the anti-subversion legislation -- or the societies ordinance, imposed as an obligation by Article 23 of Hong Kong's Basic Law -- would sabotage the territory's residents' freedom of speech, especially after the public demonstrations in the city a month ago, the official said.
"But what concerns the government most is whether China would try to limit our activities in Hong Kong by applying the ordinance," he said.
Like other nations, Taiwan has a representative office in Hong Kong, under the administration of the Mainland Affairs Council and with the official name "Hong Kong Affairs Bureau" (HKAB).
However, because of the sensitive relationship between China and Taiwan, the bureau has been operating under the name of "Chung Hwa Travel Service Hong Kong."
"There has been a tacit agreement on this for years between Hong Kong and Taiwan, and it works very well," the official said.
However, things may change when the bill becomes law.
"The original article prohibits any connection between local Hong Kong political associations and foreign political organizations. And in the amendment, Taiwanese organizations have been included," he said.
According to the proposed ordinance, "connection" is defined as financial support, an affiliation, policy determination or control in decision-making processes.
The police or other Hong Kong government agencies may refuse or cancel the registration of a local political body, if they think it is connected to foreign organizations after consultation with the secretary for security. Officers may otherwise recommend to the security secretary that the workings of the body be prohibited, according to the proposed ordinance.
"Here comes the problem. The HKAB is not only a travel agency. It is also responsible for press releases, information gathering and it has connections with local academics and societies," the official said.
"The PRC government can prohibit our activities, which to its mind are illegal, through the Hong Kong government, by applying the ordinance," he said.
The deterrent effect of the proposed legislation would also decrease the incentives for Hong Kong residents or organizations to have contact with us, the official said, and this would affect our influence and information gathering in Hong Kong.
The other thing to worry about is the rights of tens of thousands of Taiwanese who reside in Hong Kong, the official said.
The proposed ordinance stipulates that a "Chinese national" would commit treason if he or she intends to overthrow or intimidate the central government of the PRC, or if he or she compels the PRC government to change its policies or measures. The crime is punishable by life imprisonment.
"The problem is, is a Taiwanese a Chinese national?" the official said.
"After the civil war ended in 1949, the nations on either side of the Taiwan Strait split into two political entities, according to the ROC Constitution ? it is a very thorny issue," he said.
"There are people who annually celebrate Double Ten Day in Hong Kong and in Taiwan. These persons are in danger of being arrested for supporting Taiwan," he said.
According to a weekly report by the Mainland Affairs Counsel, the government has expressed its concern to the Hong Kong government, but the latter refused to comment.
China has reserved offshore airspace in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea from March 27 to May 6, issuing alerts usually used to warn of military exercises, although no such exercises have been announced, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported yesterday. Reserving such a large area for 40 days without explanation is an “unusual step,” as military exercises normally only last a few days, the paper said. These alerts, known as Notice to Air Missions (Notams), “are intended to inform pilots and aviation authorities of temporary airspace hazards or restrictions,” the article said. The airspace reserved in the alert is
NAMING SPAT: The foreign ministry called on Denmark to propose an acceptable solution to the erroneous nationality used for Taiwanese on residence permits Taiwan has revoked some privileges for Danish diplomatic staff over a Danish permit that lists “Taiwan” as “China,” Eric Huang (黃鈞耀), head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Department of European Affairs, told a news conference in Taipei yesterday. Reporters asked Huang whether the Danish government had responded to the ministry’s request that it correct the nationality on Danish residence permits of Taiwanese, which has been listed as “China” since 2024. Taiwan’s representative office in Denmark continues to communicate with the Danish government, and the ministry has revoked some privileges previously granted to Danish representatives in Taiwan and would continue to review
More than 6,000 Taiwanese students have participated in exchange programs in China over the past two years, despite the Mainland Affairs Council’s (MAC) “orange light” travel advisory, government records showed. The MAC’s publicly available registry showed that Taiwanese college and university students who went on exchange programs across the Strait numbered 3,592 and 2,966 people respectively. The National Immigration Agency data revealed that 2,296 and 2,551 Chinese students visited Taiwan for study in the same two years. A review of the Web sites of publicly-run universities and colleges showed that Taiwanese higher education institutions continued to recruit students for Chinese educational programs without
The first bluefin tuna of the season, brought to shore in Pingtung County and weighing 190kg, was yesterday auctioned for NT$10,600 (US$333.5) per kilogram, setting a record high for the local market. The auction was held at the fish market in Donggang Fishing Harbor, where the Siaoliouciou Island-registered fishing vessel Fu Yu Ching No. 2 delivered the “Pingtung First Tuna” it had caught for bidding. Bidding was intense, and the tuna was ultimately jointly purchased by a local restaurant and a local company for NT$10,600 per kilogram — NT$300 ,more than last year — for a total of NT$2.014 million. The 67-year-old skipper
RSS