The Ministry of the Interior on Thursday said it would appeal a court ruling that dismissed accusations it brought against 27 Taiwanese over breaches of 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).
The Taipei High Administrative Court earlier on Thursday said that the 27 young people had not breached the act by taking positions offered in Haicang District in China’s Xiamen.
The people signed contracts with Hai An Service Co, which is part of the Hailv Group, to be community manager assistants with salaries of 12,000 yuan to 23,000 yuan (US$1,724 to US$3,305), the ministry said.
Photo: CNA
The work required them to be based at the community from September 2018 to March last year, it said.
The positions entailed affiliation with the Chinese government and the ministry fined each of the Taiwanese NT$100,000, citing the act.
The job required “recognition of the 1992 consensus,” the ministry said.
The so-called “1992 consensus” — a term that former Mainland Affairs Council chairman Su Chi (蘇起) in 2006 admitted making up in 2000 — refers to a tacit understanding between the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) that both sides of the Taiwan Strait acknowledge that there is “one China,” with each side having its own interpretation of what “China” means.
However, the court said that the work did not conflict with the Mainland Affairs Council’s three principles regarding cross-strait affairs, was not affiliated with Chinese politics and the accused did not have legal power over Chinese.
“The court could not in good faith agree that taking the position affected national security or Taiwan’s interests,” the court said.
The three principles refer to whether the council determines that a job is affiliated with the CCP, the Chinese military or government; that a role would affect regional safety or stability; or that it would cause the worker to waver in their national identification or loyalty to Taiwan to such an extent that it would harm national interests or safety.
While the Xiamen jobs were part of the 31 measures China used to woo Taiwanese, all cross-strait interactions face such risks, which are unavoidable unless all interactions were to be banned, the court said.
Chinese “united front” tactics seeking to “win the hearts and minds” of Taiwanese should be met with policies that invite Chinese to witness Taiwanese democracy, not by refusing Chinese ventures completely, as that would only make Beijing’s desire to divide and conquer all the easier, the court said.
The ministry failed to show how the “united front” tactics would negatively affect Taiwan, it said.
Moreover, denying Taiwanese opportunities to work in China due to “alleged” negative effects goes against the Constitution’s guarantee of the right to work, it said.
The contracts’ conditions requiring “recognition of the 1992 consensus” is how the Chinese government approaches all Taiwanese affairs, the court said, adding that while the job description required recognition of the “consensus,” there was no such prerequisite or obligation in the contracts.
Every Taiwanese has a right to freedom of belief and political inclination, which cover an agreement over the “consensus,” it said, adding that the ministry seeking to punish people for taking a job requiring recognition of the “1992 consensus” is punishing political beliefs, a blatant breach of their rights.
The council said that it supports the ministry’s decision to appeal.
Premier Su Tseng-chang (蘇貞昌) yesterday said that he also supported the ministry’s decision to appeal.
“Taiwan is a free and democratic nation based on the rule of law, and the government’s decisions are likewise based on the law,” Su said. “The ruling is not final. We support the ministry’s decision to appeal.”
Additional reporting by Sean Lin
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