Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers have proposed an amendment to the National Security Act (國家安全法) that would ensure elected representatives have half the normal sentence added to their term if convicted of leaking state secrets.
Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Ma Wen-chun (馬文君) is under investigation for allegedly leaking confidential material about Taiwan’s Indigenous Defense Submarine Program to South Korea.
Local media reported that during closed-door meetings of the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee at which details of the submarine program were reviewed, Ma brought in a personal device to call her aides, and refused to sign a confidentiality agreement.
Photo: Lin Liang-sheng, Taipei Times
DPP lawmakers on Thursday last week filed a motion to change the committee’s rules, which was passed.
The amended rules stipulate that no electronic or recording devices, including smart watches and bracelets, legislature-issued communication devices, and cameras, are allowed on lawmakers, officials and staffers attending the committee’s closed-door meetings.
In addition, they cannot keep handwritten notes, must sign a confidentiality agreement and can be searched, the rules state.
However, DPP Legislator Lin Ching-yi (林靜儀) said the new rules do not prevent legislators who hear confidential government or military information from passing it on.
“It is almost impossible to guard against representatives elected by our democratic system who are working for an enemy state,” she said.
Lawmakers have many opportunities to access military files and national secrets, and have the authority to ask government agencies to provide them with confidential material for review, she said.
“Yet when they ... leak national secrets, they receive the same punishment as any member of the public,” Lin said.
Lin and other DPP legislators proposed a supplement to Article 7 of the act and have received the signatures needed to ensure it is discussed by the legislature.
The proposed amendment refers to the definition of public officials in Article 2 of the Civil Servants Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法), saying that they should face a punishment proportional to their responsibilities “to ensure our national security is safeguarded.”
The proposed amendment says that those serving in office, or who are retired — whether they are in government or the armed forces — must have half the normal sentence added to their term if convicted under Article 2 of the National Security Act.
Separately, DPP Legislator Lin Tai-hua (林岱樺) had proposed an amendment to the Rules of Procedure of the Legislative Yuan (立法院議事規則), which passed a first reading on Oct. 6.
The proposed amendment requires all legislators, invited government officials and legislature staffers to sign a confidentiality agreement when attending closed-door meetings, or be refused access.
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS