Want China Times
Date: 2015-06-04
By: CNA
The Association of Taiwan Journalists (ATJ) on Wednesday railed against China’s
The Declaration of Opposition to China’s National Security Act seen on the website of the Association of Taiwan Journalists. (Internet photo)
draft National Security Act, which had passed its second reading in the National People’s Congress Standing Committee last month, as it may gravely endanger Taiwan’s freedom of news coverage and freedom of expression.
Article 11 of the draft law states that China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity is a common obligation of all Chinese people, including the people of Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, and that no division will be tolerated.
The association said the article had failed to recognize the reality that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are governed by two distinct states whose sovereignty and legal jurisdictions do not overlap, and the fact that Taiwan is not subject to such “obligations.” It demanded that the PRC delete the “ridiculous” article.
Most notably, the association pointed out, Article 81 of the draft bill states that violation of this and other relevant laws is liable to legal repercussions, meaning that Taiwanese reporters working in China will undoubtedly become a “high risk group” after the law is enacted. [FULL STORY]
