National security officials have suggested an amendment to the Anti-infiltration Act (反滲透法) that would make it illegal to share foreign political propaganda or misinformation under the instruction or assistance of a foreign power, a source said on Tuesday.
The amendment would be a small, but necessary step toward combating Chinese infiltration, which has been identified in politics, industry and the media in Taiwan, the source said, adding that this has been done through the spread of misinformation aimed at increasing Chinese influence in the country.
“For example, if China’s Taiwan Affairs Office were to call the editorial department at a Taiwanese media company and tell them to run a piece of fake news, that is a situation where such an amendment would come into play,” the source said.
The government has made progress on combating misinformation through amendments to the Disaster Prevention and Protection Act (災害防救法), the Food Administration Act (糧食管理法), the Agricultural Products Market Transaction Act (農產品市場交易法) and the Communicable Disease Control Act (傳染病防治法), the source said.
They said that amendments to the Anti-infiltration Act would allow tougher penalties to be levied against those acting under instructions from foreign powers such as the Chinese Communist Party.
However, given the scope of the amendment, a consensus on the issue should be reached across government agencies, the source said.
“The Executive Yuan should lead the way with this and seek public consensus first,” the source said.
The National Security Council has advised an amendment that would append an additional clause to Article 7 of the Anti-infiltration Act, the source said, adding that the amendment would be drafted through discussions between the Democratic Progressive Party caucus and government agencies.
Article 7 stipulates the penalty for those found influencing presidential or public-official elections.
National Chiao Tung University law professor Lin Chih-chieh (林志潔) echoed the need to amend the Anti-infiltration Act, saying that its scope is too limited.
The act should be amended to include all forms of infiltration, including those involving the media, the economy, schools, cultural activities and so on, she said.
Separately, Lo Cheng-chung (羅承宗), director of Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technology’s Institute of Financial and Economic Law, said that the act must stipulate harsh punishments for those acting violently under instructions from Beijing.
Citing attacks on Hong Kong democracy advocates in Taiwan, he said that such acts took advantage of the shortcomings of current laws to violate the rights of individuals.
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