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Taiwan warns the population about “the risks” of traveling to China after the new revised law on state secrets comes into force on Wednesday.
Taiwanese Minister of the Continental Affairs Council, Chiu Tai-santhe body responsible for relations with China, urged Taiwanese society to be “risk-aware” when visiting Chinaadding that a list of precautions to be taken will be published.
In a statement, the government department stated that the new state secret law “significantly expands” the definition of state secrets and matters subject to confidentiality in China.
Taiwan warned that the content of the regulation was “vague and very uncertain”, with “provisions that could lead to violations of the law at any time”
“The lack of transparency in the rule of law of the Communist Party of China [PCC] considerably increased the risk of possible violations of the lawraising doubts and concerns in all areas”, noted the Council for Continental Affairs.
Under the legislation, carrying out interviewsThe academic research Or the collection of commercial information it’s from investment in China can be harmful for the “national interests” of the Asian giant.
“The Continental Affairs Council once again reminds the people that they should not travel to mainland China, unless necessary”, adds the body’s official text.
In recent years, Taiwan has also strengthened legislation to combat Chinese interference in the island’s internal affairs, notably the launch in January 2020 of an anti-infiltration law that punishes political activities supported by “hostile foreign forces”.
What is or is not a “state secret”?
The new measures have raised concerns in some sectors about the possible ambiguity in the definition of “state secrets”raising fears that it could be used to restrict freedom of expression and access to information.
The law, which has not been updated since 2010, expands the scope of what is considered “state secret” and includes, for the first time, “information platforms in the Internet” as distribution channels subject to confidentiality requirements.
The legislation also tightens restrictions imposed on public employees that deal with classified information.
According to the PCC’s official newspaper, the Global Timesthe party seeks to “strengthen leadership in the face of new challenges”, with a view to “safeguard national security and interests” and combat “new forms of espionage”such as the phishingcyber leaks and illegal cross-border data transmission.
