The Executive Yuan is working to finalize proposed amendments relating to President William Lai’s (賴清德) 17 national security strategies, sources said on Sunday.
Lai on March 13 announced the strategies to counter growing infiltration efforts against Taiwan, from reinstating the military court system to enhancing scrutiny of immigrants from China, Hong Kong and Macau.
To fortify the legal frameworks to support the measures, the Executive Yuan has since last month convened several cross-ministerial meetings and plans to propose amendments to 11 bills, as well as 75 new initiatives and 17 government programs.
Photo: I-Hwa Cheng, Bloomberg
Among the measures and administrative orders that could be implemented immediately without needing to go through legislative procedures is a requirement that religious organizations visiting China register their information and the nature of their program with the government, sources said.
They also include requiring Chinese spouses to renounce their Chinese household registration to maintain their Taiwan residency status.
Administrative orders would also implement checks on Taiwanese entertainers working in China who denigrate the sovereignty of Taiwan or voice support for hostile military action by China. The orders would also require a comprehensive review on the status of military and civil service personnel, as well as civil servants, education sector, who are believed to have Chinese residency and a Chinese ID card.
Proposed amendments to the Criminal Code of the Armed Forces (陸海空軍刑法), the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (台灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例) and the Military Trial Act (軍事審判法) would seek to raise penalties on military officers found to have engaged in espionage, passed on classified materials or sworn allegiance to an enemy state, the sources said.
To counter Chinese propaganda, the Ministry of Education has been working on new education materials to stress Taiwan’s national identity, and to better address China’s military intimidation of the nation, they said, adding that the texts are to be completed by the end of summer break.
The Cabinet would also introduce measures to check the backgrounds of aides and staff working at all levels of government to prevent foreign infiltration. The level of vetting would depend on the staff member’s job level or access to classified materials.
The checks would expand to include the vetting of first secretary and chief of staff ranks, as well as higher levels of ministries, the sources said.
The vetting would also include government contractors who have been in the same position for three years, as well as civil servants at the 10th level or lower rank, who would need approval from their supervisors to travel to China.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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