Lawmakers Debate Proposal to Outlaw Advocating for War

Lawmakers are debating proposed amendments to Taiwan's National Security Law that would outlaw advocating for war against Taiwan.

Transcript

00:00Taiwan's legislature debates proposed changes to its National Security Act,

00:05aimed at addressing growing Chinese infiltration.

00:09Among the most controversial are amendments that would make publicly advocating

00:13for other countries to wage war against Taiwan,

00:16or to eliminate its sovereignty by force, illegal,

00:20with anyone found guilty subject to a fine.

00:23These changes would also allow the government to remove this type of content

00:27from the internet or the accounts that posted it.

00:30It could also do the same for anyone sharing propaganda for the Chinese Communist Party.

00:35Opposition legislators say some of these proposed changes are too broad

00:39and could harm freedom of speech.

00:42But government officials say threats from China, which claims Taiwan and has not ruled out the use of force

01:08to seize it, make the changes necessary.

01:11The proposed changes come after several Chinese influencers,

01:35allowed to live in Taiwan through marriage to Taiwanese citizens, were deported last year.

01:41Over social media posts, the government said advocated for the unification of Taiwan and China by force.

01:49Taiwan's government said these posts violated Taiwan's cross-strait law,

01:53which says a Chinese citizen can be ordered to leave if they threaten national security or social stability.

01:58At the time, those decisions sparked some controversy over freedom of speech.

02:04Several experts told Taiwan Plus that future decisions could be better understood

02:09if Taiwan passed its own law, specifically outlawing this kind of speech.

02:14Another analyst said these amendments would also give the government away

02:18to enforce the same rules for Taiwanese people.

02:21假设这个人不是一親来的外国配偶呢?

02:26假设他今天就是台湾人呢?

02:27他有台湾的護照,他是台湾人的话?

02:29但他讲的话你就没有办法用台湾人的關系条件去处理啦。

02:33所以呢也釀成了这一次修法了,我们就直接写任何人。

02:36不管你是谁,纵使你是本国人呢?

02:39也不是外国一親的人的话,你就是不能讲这种话嘛。

02:42This is only the proposed amendment's initial review, and it's a long way away from being passed, if it's passed at all.

02:49But already, the idea has sparked debate.

02:53Patrick Chen and Cadence Quaranta for Taiwan Plus.