Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council is calling on the public not to go after Chinese spouses of Taiwanese citizens. The statement comes after three Chinese spouses had their residency permits revoked over posts on social media that immigration officials say advocate for the unification of Taiwan and China by force.
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00:00In recent weeks, three Chinese people living in Taiwan have had their residence permits revoked
00:05over posts on social media that immigration officials say advocate for the unification of Taiwan and China by force.
00:12All three became residents by marrying a Taiwanese citizen,
00:15something not uncommon in Taiwan, home to around 300,000 Chinese spouses.
00:21Their statements have sparked anger and controversy within Taiwan.
00:25The Mainland Affairs Council, which manages relations with China,
00:28is asking people not to target other Chinese spouses over these comments.
00:59Authorities first revoked the Chinese influencer known as Yaya in Taiwan's residency around two weeks ago.
01:09Then, last week, two more Chinese people living in Taiwan had their residency permits canceled
01:14after immigration officials concluded that they, too, had posted social media videos promoting unification by force,
01:20pointing to statements they made like, quote,
01:23Chinese flags are painted all over the streets in Taiwan.
01:27Officials say advocating for unification by force violates regulations governing Chinese citizens living in Taiwan,
01:33which say residency can be revoked if they threaten national security or social stability.
01:39And they have cited an international convention to justify their decision,
01:42which prohibits propaganda for war, something they say does not fall within the bounds of freedom of speech.
01:49But one communications expert in Taiwan has questioned a Taipei court's decision to uphold Yaya in Taiwan's punishment,
01:56saying the court did not prove that her comments cause a direct and immediate threat to Taiwan's security.
02:01Legislators from both the ruling Democratic Progressive Party and opposition Kuomintang have also chimed in.
02:19All three Chinese people will now have to leave Taiwan.
02:40Authorities say they'll continue to investigate reports of other Chinese spouses who may have broken the law,
02:46with one eye on how society reacts to the tougher measures.
02:49Ryan Wu and Cadence Cuaranta for Taiwan Plus.