Perceived restrictions on free speech under proposed amendments to the National Security Act (國家安全法) are “an unrealistic and impractical fantasy,” Deputy Minister of the Interior Ma Shih-yuan (馬士元) said yesterday.
Article 4 of the Executive Yuan’s draft amendment would prohibit individuals from using speech, images, audio, video or digital means to publicly advocate or support the “Mainland area,” Hong Kong, Macau and other hostile foreign forces in waging war against Taiwan or employing non-peaceful means to undermine its sovereignty.
Violators would face fines ranging from NT$100,000 to NT$1 million (US$3,134 to US$31,343), with enforcement handled by the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Justice, the Mainland Affairs Council and other agencies.
Photo: Tien Yu-hua, Taipei Times
CRIMINAL CONDUCT
Indiscriminate threats already constitute criminal conduct and speech advocating attacks on the nation or the overthrow of the democratic system should likewise be subject to legal penalties, Ma told a public hearing at the legislature in Taipei.
Lawyer Liao Kuo-hsiang (廖國翔) linked the amendments to concerns over China-born Taiwan People’s Party Legislator-at-large Li Zhenxiu (李貞秀).
Li’s eligibility to serve as a lawmaker has been under scrutiny since before she was sworn in on Feb. 3 amid questions over whether she had formally renounced her Chinese citizenship, a legal requirement for holding office in Taiwan.
Liao said the number of people indicted for allegedly spying for, or assisting, the Chinese Communist Party in 2024 was three times higher than in 2021, which he said reflected intensifying Chinese infiltration.
WRONGFUL ACCUSATIONS
Handling such cases as administrative violations, rather than criminal offenses, would better protect defendants’ rights and allow legal remedies for wrongful accusations, he said.
Lawyer Fu Hsin-yi (傅欣儀) said existing treason provisions in the Criminal Code apply only when individuals collude with foreign forces to wage war, warning that waiting until that stage would be too late.
The proposed amendments would allow for earlier intervention in a more proportionate way, she said.
However, New Party spokeswoman Chen Li-ling (陳麗玲) said that previous amendments had resulted in prolonged travel restrictions imposed on party members who were later acquitted, raising concerns about due process.
National Yunlin University of Science and Technology professor Yang Chih-chieh (楊智傑) said provisions on “openly inciting support for war” should be limited to speech that demonstrably increases the risk of conflict, and called for clearer procedural safeguards.
Kenting National Park service technician Yang Jien-fon (楊政峰) won a silver award in World Grand Prix Photography Awards Spring Season for his photograph of two male rat snakes intertwined in combat. Yang’s colleagues at Kenting National Park said he is a master of nature photography who has been held back by his job in civil service. The awards accept entries in all four seasons across six categories: architectural and urban photography, black-and-white and fine art photography, commercial and fashion photography, documentary and people photography, nature and experimental photography, and mobile photography. Awards are ranked according to scores and divided into platinum, gold and
More than half of the bamboo vipers captured in Tainan in the past few years were found in the city’s Sinhua District (新化), while other districts had smaller catches or none at all. Every year, Tainan captures about 6,000 snakes which have made their way into people’s homes. Of the six major venomous snakes in Taiwan, the cobra, the many-banded krait, the brown-spotted pit viper and the bamboo viper are the most frequently captured. The high concentration of bamboo vipers captured in Sinhua District is puzzling. Tainan Agriculture Bureau Forestry and Nature Conservation Division head Chu Chien-ming (朱健明) earlier this week said that the
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