Owning, displaying Taiwan flag should not be punishable under new law: Reporter

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/07/01
By: Matthew Strong, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Amid protests against the introduction of China’s draconian national security law in Hong Kong, police arrested one man carrying 30 Taiwanese flags in his bag, reports said Wednesday (July 1).

The new law faced widespread global condemnation as it was seen as a breach of the 1997 handover agreement promising the residents of the former British colony “One Country, Two Systems” for 50 years.

Protesters took to the streets of Hong Kong Wednesday, but by 6 p.m., at least 180 had been arrested, including seven for specific breaches of the national security law.

While several of the detainees reportedly carried banners advocating independence for Hong Kong, one man was led away by police because his bag contained 30 Taiwanese national flags, Liberty Times reported.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 07/01/2020
By: Yu Hsiang, Yeh Su-ping and Matthew Mazzetta

Taipei, July 1 (CNA) A senior official in Taiwan's governing Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) on Wednesday urged citizens to exercise caution when visiting Hong Kong, one day after China imposed a sweeping national security law on the territory that makes support for Hong Kong or Taiwan independence punishable by up to life imprisonment.

"I hope Taiwanese people traveling to Hong Kong will be mindful of their safety, because this is a law that affects not only Hong Kongers, but people in Taiwan and in countries around the world," DPP Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) said at a party gathering Wednesday.

The new law, which China imposed late Tuesday, criminalizes four categories of offenses — separatism, subversion, terrorism and collusion with foreign countries — with maximum penalties of life imprisonment.

Because the law can be applied for "offenses" committed inside or outside the territory, and explicitly defines secession as anything undermining the territorial integrity of China, opponents of the law fear it could be used to prosecute anyone who has spoken in support of Taiwan independence.    [FULL  STORY]

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 02, 2020
By: Chung Li-hua / Staff reporter

The Taiwan-Hong Kong Services and Exchanges Office yesterday officially began operations, marking a milestone in the government’s support for Hong Kongers in their pursuit for democracy and freedom, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chen Ming-tong (陳明通) said.

Chen and Katherine Chang (張小月), chairwoman of the Taiwan-Hong Kong Economic and Cultural Cooperation Council, which oversees the office, yesterday unveiled the new unit’s plaque at a ceremony in Taipei.

The office is tasked with helping Hong Kongers who plan to study, work, invest, start a business or settle in Taiwan.

It would also aid Hong Kongers whose security and freedom are at risk due to political factors on a case-by-case basis, as stipulated in Article 18 of the Act Governing Relations with Hong Kong and Macau (香港澳門關係條例).    [FULL  STORY]

Radio Taiwan International
Date: 30 June, 2020
By: Andrew Ryan

Taiwan’s Cabinet on Monday released a third report on two international human rights covenants. Premier Su Tseng-chang was in attendance, along with the ministers of justice, health, education, and economics.

Taiwan is not a signatory of either covenant (the ICCPR and ICESCR) because it is not a member of the United Nations. However, it uses those covenants as a way to measure the country’s progress. Specifically, the two covenants cover civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights.

At Monday’s press conference, Premier Su said that the government's efforts to promote human rights over the past four years have improved the legal system. He said these efforts have also resulted in many concrete breakthroughs, like the establishment of a National Human Rights Museum, the passage of same-sex marriage, and the formation of a National Human Rights Commission, which begins operations on August 1.

It took eight months and 68 meetings to create the latest report. Other human rights developments detailed in the report include: the formation of laws to improve labor-management litigation rights, the protection of taxpayer rights, improvement of the treatment of prisoners, and the decriminalization of adultery.    [FULL  STORY]

Sputnik News
Date: 30.06.2020

While the US may be gearing up for a military confrontation with China, some Taiwanese strategists are worried Washington may not be willing to make it happen over a cross-strait invasion.

As tensions simmer between the People’s Republic of China and Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a rebellious province, one prominent defense analyst and former official is afraid the United States won’t honor its informal commitments to guarding Taiwanese autonomy.

‘The Situation is a lot Grimmer’

“Given the military imbalance between Taiwan and the mainland, the absence of cross-strait dialogue and no [efficient communication] mechanism in place between the US and the mainland, I am worried about the situation because anything could happen,” Su Chi, president of the Taipei Forum think tank and former secretary general of Taiwan’s National Security Council, told the South China Morning Post on Tuesday.

Su fretted to that outlet that a potential People’s Liberation Army (PLA) offensive could be over so quickly, it may be little more than “wishful thinking” to hope the US would shoulder the cost of intervention by that point.

“The situation today is a lot grimmer than the time when Chen Shui Bian and Ma Ying Jeou were presidents” Su said of the two administration before current Taiwanese President Tsai Ing Wen’s, covering the period between 2000 and 2016.    [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan condemns new security law, expresses support for people of Hong Kong

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/06/30
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — After China pushed through a draconian security law for Hong Kong on Tuesday (June 30), Taiwan warned its citizens to beware of new risks when visiting the city.

On Tuesday, the National People's Congress Standing Committee approved a heavy-handed national security law that criminalizes secession, subversion, and collusion with foreign forces and greatly constrains protests and freedom of speech. The law will enable the Chinese government to set up a "national security agency" in Hong Kong and interpretation of the new legislation ultimately lies with Beijing.

In response, Taiwan Cabinet Spokesman Evian Ting (丁怡銘) issued a press release in which he said that the move "severely impacts freedom, human rights, and the stable development of Hong Kong society. The government strongly condemns it and reiterates its support for the Hong Kong people's fight for democracy and freedom," reported Newtalk.

Ting said Taiwan would continue to monitor developments with the law in Hong Kong and related actions carried out by the Chinese and Hong Kong governments. He then warned Taiwanese citizens to be aware of the "possible risks" of going to Hong Kong after the law is implemented.    [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 06/30/2020
By: Kuo Hsun-wen and Evelyn Kao

Taipei, June 30 (CNA) Taiwanese researchers have developed a test kit that can detect potentially severe cases of COVID-19 in just two minutes, and it is now in the clinical trial phase, the research team leader said Tuesday.

The prototype of the rapid test kit was developed by National Tsing Hua University and Tri-Service General Hospital, Cheng Chao-min (鄭兆珉), a professor at the university's Institute of Biomedical Engineering, said during a presentation of the research project.

The research team is working with Italian hospitals and medical institutions to carry out clinical trials of the test, Cheng said.

The team has also filed an application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for emergency use authorization (EUA) of the test kit, based on the results of the clinical trials, he said.    [FULL  STORY]

UPTICK IN NUMBERS: The Taipei deputy mayor said the city has services to assist new immigrants, but has established an office specifically to help those from Hong Kong

Taipei Times
Date: Jul 01, 2020
By: Staff writer, with CNA

The Taiwan-Hong Kong Services and Exchanges Office today officially opens in Hong Kong, where it is to provide humanitarian assistance to Hong Kongers, after Beijing yesterday passed a controversial national security law for the territory.

President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) expressed dismay over China’s passage of the law, saying that Beijing has broken its pledge to allow Hong Kong to maintain a high degree of autonomy for at least 50 years following its handover from the UK.

“I feel extremely disappointed [about the law’s passage], which means China did not keep its promise to Hong Kong,” Tsai said in Taipei.

Beijing’s “broken promise” also showed that the “one country, two systems” model for Hong Kong and Macau, which the Chinese government has also proposed for Taiwan, is not feasible for the nation, she said.    [FULL  STORY]

PLA aircraft could fly over island if US invites Taiwan military for exercise: experts

Global Times
Date: 2020/6/30
By: Yang Sheng

As the US has been increasingly high-profile in demonstrating its illegal military cooperation with the island of Taiwan such as releasing on Monday rare footage showing joint training exercises between US and Taiwan forces on the island, on the same day, both Chinese and US military aircraft were seen in the airspace near the island of Taiwan. 

Chinese mainland experts noted that US President Donald Trump is probably helping the mainland speed up its reunification with Taiwan. 

Such a move of releasing rare footage on "joint military training" between US military and the island's military provides evidence that it was the US and the separatist authorities on the island that first changed the status quo and provoked the mainland; and if the mainland launches a military operation to reunify with Taiwan some day, the US and Taiwan will bear full responsibility, the experts noted.

"A promotional video featuring joint US-Taiwan military training has surfaced on social media – the first such footage to be seen, as these kinds of operations are usually deemed confidential," taiwannews.com reported on Monday.    [FULL  STORY]

The equally rare public confirmation of the exercise comes as fears of a serious crisis in the Taiwan Strait are growing.

The Drive
Date: June 29, 2020
By: Joseph Trevithick

An official video from the U.S. Army's 1st Special Forces Group has offered a rare look at Green Berets training on the island of Taiwan. The unusual release comes at a time when authorities in Taipei are looking to further distance themselves from the mainland government in Beijing, which has prompted threats from Chinese officials. In addition, the U.S. government has increasingly shown its support for Taiwan in more visible ways, including sending warships and aircraft through the Taiwan Strait and approving significant arms sales to the Taiwanese military. 

The 1st Special Forces Group first posted the short motivational video, titled "Excellence," on its official Facebook page on June 16, 2020, and it remains up and prominently featured there at the time of writing. One segment notably shows Green Berets carrying a mock casualty to what is clearly a Taiwanese Army UH-60M Black Hawk helicopter, which is readily identifiable by the blue and white insignia on the tail boom. In another clip, an individual is seen holding a Type 91 assault rifle, the standard individual arm of the Taiwanese military.
[FULL  STORY]