|
[[Image:ontdur.PNG|right|Durham Regional Municipality]]
The '''Anti-Secession Law''' ([[Chinese language|Chinese]]: 反分裂国家法, literally "Law Against Splitting the State") is a [[law]] passed by the third conference of the 10th [[National People's Congress]] of the [[People's Republic of China]]. It was ratified on [[March 14]], [[2005]] and went into effect instantly. [[Hu Jintao]], [[President of the People's Republic of China]], promulgated the bill with [http://www.china.org.cn/chinese/zhuanti/ffl/810447.htm Presidential Decree No. 34]. The law is relatively short, at ten articles, but was met with much controversy as it legalized the use of "non-peaceful means" against Taiwan in the event of a declaration of [[Taiwan independence]]. The law is not to be applied to [[Hong Kong]] and [[Macao]], as they are independent judicial entities having their own judicial systems.
'''The Regional Municipality of Durham''', commonly called Durham Region (2003 population 525,000), is a regional political area located east of [[Toronto, Ontario]]. It has an area of approximately 2,500 square kilometers and includes the municipalities of [[Pickering, Ontario|Pickering]], [[Ajax, Ontario|Ajax]], [[Oshawa, Ontario|Oshawa]], [[Whitby, Ontario|Whitby]], [[Clarington, Ontario|Clarington]], [[Uxbridge, Ontario|Uxbridge Township]], [[Scugog, Ontario|Scugog Township]] and [[Brock, Ontario|Brock Township]]. Durham Region is considered part of the [[Greater Toronto Area]]. The regional seat is in [[Whitby, Ontario|Whitby]].
The region of Durham was established in [[1974]] as one of several new "regional" governments in the Province of [[Ontario]]--primarily in fast-growing urban and suburban areas. Durham Region encompasses areas that were previously part of Ontario County and Durham County.
==Content==
The southern portion of the region, adjacent to Lake Ontario is primarily suburban in nature, forming the eastern flank of the "905" belt of suburbs and exurbs around Toronto. The northern area encompasses rural areas and small towns.
Article 1 states that the aim of the law is to stop the [[Taiwanese independence]] movement and promote [[Chinese reunification|reunification]]. Stabilising the [[Taiwan Straits]] area, protecting the interests of the [[Zhonghua Minzu]] (people of Chinese nationality/ethnicity) are also purposes of the law, which is formulated according to the [[Constitution of the People's Republic of China]].
Major employers include [[General Motors of Canada]], [[Ontario Power Generation]], [[Lakeridge Health System]], [[Durham College]], [[University of Ontario Institute of Technology]] and many smaller component and transportation firms supplying the automotive industry.
[[Beijing]] claims that this bill is the PRC's most sincere attempt at resolving the [[Taiwan issue]] peacefully. In the full text of the law is there no explicit reference to using force as a means to resolve the issue; instead, the language used is "non-peaceful means" (Article 8).
The Canadian headquarters of [[General Motors]], [[Volkswagen]], and [[BMW]] are all located in the region. The automotive industry is especially concentrated in Oshawa.
However, [[Taipei]] points to the same Article 8 as cause for concern. Shortly after the bill was passed, [[Chen Shui-bian]] called for a National Security meeting in Taipei to discuss the issue.
The four separate [[public transit]] systems in the region, operated by various municipalities, are set to be amalgamated under the Region's administration at the beginning of [[2006]].
The [[Three Links]] are mentioned in item 2 of Article 6, and are mentioned as a way for the mainland to "protect the peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits area" and to "develop cross-straits relations".
Durham also has one [[Indian reserve]], [[Mississaugas of Scugog Island, Ontario|Mississaugas of Scugog Island]]
==Reaction==
== External linksLink == ▼Reaction from the mainland was pretty much unified. State media and the Beijing leadership all stood firmly behind the new law and vowed never to allow anyone, using any means, to separate Taiwan from China, in any name.
*[http://www.region.durham.on.ca Region of Durham] The Region of Durham.
*[http://www.durhamtourism.ca DurhamTourism.ca] Tourism guide to the region.
*[http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/freecycledurhamregion/ Freecycle Durham Region] Home page of the Durham Region chapter of the worldwide [http://www.freecycle.org Freecycle Network]
{{Ontario}}
[[Category:Census divisions of Ontario]]
Taiwan reacted, obviously displeased, to the ratification of the new law. Local media point to an increasing opposition to the new law. The [[Pan-Green coalition]], in particular, reacted with distaste.
[[pt:Municipalidade Regional de Durham]]
In the run-up to the law's ratification, State media from the mainland accused those on Taiwan in favour of Taiwan independence of creating hostility to the new law and of confusing the Taiwanese. Taipei hit back, saying that it was considering an anti-annexation law as a means to counter the anti-secession law. Beijing denounced this as irresponsible.
The [[United States]], in the meantime, urged both sides of the [[Taiwan Strait]] from refraining in acts which would change the status quo.
== Background ==
The proposed '''National Unification Promotion Law of the People's Republic of China''' ([[Chinese language|Chinese]]: 中华人民共和国国家统一促进法) is a document that appeared in early [[2004]] as a suggestion to create formal legal basis for the [[People's Republic of China]]'s unification with [[Taiwan]]. It was authored by a Chinese scholar Yu Yuanzhou (余元洲), a professor from the [[Jianghan University]] in [[Wuhan]] who does not have any formal governmental position. Although no formal legislative action has been taken on the document, this fact that such a law is up for debate is viewed by many in Taiwan as evidence of hostile intent on the part of the PRC. The law will not be applied to [[Hong Kong]] and [[Macao]], as they are independent juducial entities having their own judicial systems.
This proposal have not been directly incorporated in the bill (which later passed into law). None of the policies (e.g. the federal policy, or a new currency, see below) appeared in the final, official anti-secession law of the PRC.
Although Taiwan has never been under PRC control, the PRC government considers [[Taiwan]] to be the 23rd province of the People's Republic of China. According to the PRC argument, the government of the [[Republic of China]] ceased to be legitimate following its retreat to Taiwan in 1949, and thus all sovereignty and governmental authority in China was automatically transferred to the PRC, including that of Taiwan which was then under ROC administration. The official ROC line counters that it did not cease to exist in 1949 and has continued to function as a soverign political entity on Taiwan to the present day, making the relation between the PRC and ROC similar to that between other states similarly partitioned (such as [[North Korea]] and [[South Korea]]). For more information, see [[Political status of Taiwan]]. The PRC's position has been acknowledged by most other nations but not formally recognized, as most nations prefer to take an ambiguous approach on the issue.
Since 1949, the PRC government has demanded that Taiwan unify under the PRC, and has reserved the right to use military force to compel Taiwan to do so if necessary. However, opinion polls conducted in Taiwan have indicated that there is very little support for unification on the PRC's terms, even among those who favor eventual unification, making peaceful unification unlikely for the forseeable future. With the reelection of [[Chen Shui-bian]] to the ROC Presidency, and the growth of [[Taiwan independence]] sentiment, a new Taiwanese identity appears to be emerging on the island as opposed to identification with China.
In a string of unsuccessful efforts to change Taiwanese public opinion, several propositions and leaks from PRC governmental organs expressed consideration for law aiming to formalize the policy for [[Chinese reunification]] between [[mainland China]] and Taiwan under the authority of the PRC. This culminated in [[May 2004]], when [[Premier of the People's Republic of China|Premier]] [[Wen Jiabao]] pronounced to a group of Chinese expatriates in [[London]] that serious consideration of such a law would be taken. [http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/intl/2004/05/200405112113.shtml] Several days later, Yu's suggestion (similar to a [[green paper]]) emerged.
=== Provisions of the initial proposal by Yu Yuanzhou===
The draft document has 31 articles, organized in 8 chapters. Its provisions touch mostly [[constitution|constitutional law]].
Article 2 establishes Taiwan as the "'''Taiwan Special Political Area of PRC''', or Taiwan SPA of PRC for short" (中华人民共和国台湾特别政治区); this appears to be an [[political divisions of China|administrative division]] of the PRC distinct from the [[Special Administrative Region]] espoused by the PRC government for Taiwan. Curiously, it allows Chinese people loyal (or having affinity) to the [[Republic of China]] to transiently view the mainland as "'''The Mainland Special Political Area of ROC''', or The Mainland SPA of ROC" (中华民国大陆特别政治区). Article 3 reiterated the PRC's aim to implement the '[[one country, two systems]]' policy for Taiwan, which would be brought into reality with military force if necessary.
Article 8 exempts Taiwan from any PRC imposed taxes. Chapter 3 proposes the establishment of a new, common [[currency]] called the '''Chinese dollar''' set by [[fiat currency|fiat]] to be worth 0.1 [[gram]]s of [[gold]] forever.
Two methods of unification are laid out as options: Constitutional arrangement for '''peaceful unification''' is contained in Chapter 4: the [[Constitution of the Republic of China]] which is used in Taiwan is said to be obsolete; a [[federation]] is proposed. Chapter 5 provides the legal basis for '''non-peaceful ([[Military of China|military]]) methods of unification'''. The conditions for the use of armed force are set out, and explicitly states that the PRC may not limit itself to the use of conventional weapons, implying the use of [[weapons of mass destruction]]. Article 18 also stipulates that Taiwan will be subject to attack should it defy policy set by the PRC government.
Chapter 6 provides for honours for those promoting unification, whereas Chapter 7 sets out criminal penalties against separatism -- limited to acts carried out within Chinese territory, and acts carried out anywhere by Chinese residents in the Mainland, [[Macau]], [[Hong Kong]], and Taiwan.
Article 30, section 1 provides that the law and subsequent changes thereof are to be carried out by the [[National People's Congress]] and signed into force by the [[President of the People's Republic of China]] -- parenthetically, 'Head of State', probably to infer the possibility of a different position once the law takes effect; section 2 provides that permanent sections of the law cannot be changed unless later agreements contain promises that are 'more favourable' (更加优惠, but the beneficiary is unspecified); section 3 states that the law is lower than the [[Constitution of the People's Republic of China]] but higher than any other laws of the land.
=== Reaction ===
[[President of the Republic of China|President]] [[Chen Shui-bian]] of Taiwan has expressed serious concerns about this proposal, and has expressed doubts that the Taiwanese public would find it acceptable. [http://www.ttnn.com/cna/news.cfm/040730/74] Chen also pointed out that the law being proposed is mostly intended as a measure to legitimize the PRC's military threats against [[Taiwan]]. [http://news1.yam.com//chinatimes/focus/news/200409/20040903075456.html] Furthermore, the proposed law would incriminate anyone holding opinions other than those supporting PRC policy on Taiwan-China unification. Under the law dissidents would be prosecuted under charges of treason, retroactively effective up to 100 years, raising serious questions about [[freedom of speech]] and [[civil liberties]]. Chen stated that the law would only serve to increase the feelings of animosity of the Taiwanese people towards the PRC and increase tensions.
It is worth noting that the PRC's [[One country, two systems]] policy has been shown to be approved by less than 10% of Taiwan residents in multiple recent opinion polls[http://www.epochtimes.com/b5/1/7/4/n106193.htm]. Moreover, many people also questioned how a proposed PRC law could be applied onto a territory over which the PRC does not have [[jurisdiction]]. Even though few states formally recognize the ROC as an independent country, most prefer to remain ambigous over the matter. The [[Political status of Taiwan]] is still an ongoing multilateral dispute.
It has been unclear as to the degree to which this law is or was ever taken seriously by PRC authorities. The law
was proposed by an individual without any governmental authority, and no formal action on the law has ever been taken by the [[National People's Congress]]. After summer 2004, references to the proposed law on both sides of the straits became rare, leading many to conclude that it was released by the PRC mainly to gauge public opinion.
== Development ==
In December [[2004]], the Chinese state news agency [[Xinhua News Agency|Xinhua]] reported that the [[National People's Congress]] in its upcoming session would enact an 'anti-[[secession]] law', without specifying further details.
In a rare moment of agreement, Taiwanese politicians from both the [[Pan-green coalition]] and [[Pan-blue coalition]] have reacted negatively towards this development. Some politicians have proposed that Taiwan enact an 'anti-annexation law' to counter the proposed PRC law. Various opinion polls have revealed that 80% of Taiwan residents oppose such an 'anti-[[secession]] law' and a majority agree that a defensive [[referendum]] should be held in the advance of such a law to protect the [[status quo]].[http://news.yam.com/ettoday/politics/200412/20041231784093.html]
President [[Chen Shui-bian]] commented on the 'anti-[[secession]] law' during his 2005 new year speech: "Such actions will not only unilaterally change the status quo of peace in the Taiwan Strait, but will also pose the greatest threat to regional stability and world peace." Whereas PRC President [[Hu Jintao]] said "We will definitely not allow anyone to separate Taiwan from China by any means." in his New Year’s Eve speech.[http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=story_2-1-2005_pg4_6]
== See also ==
* [[Political status of Taiwan]]
* [[Chinese reunification]]
* [[Taiwan independence]]
{{wikisource|中華人民共和國反分裂國家法}}
* [http://cn.news.yahoo.com/05-03-/355/29vvx.html text of the Law Against Splitting the State]
* [http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/intl/2004/05/200405112113.shtml report of Wen Jiabao on drafting and passing the law]
* [http://www.nanfangdaily.com.cn/rwzk/20040616/sz/200407120023.asp interview with Yu Yuanzhou]
* [http://www.peacehall.com/news/gb/pubvp/2004/05/200405190839.shtml full text of the suggestion document]
*[http://www.etaiwannews.com/Editorial/2004/08/02/1091415032.htm Taiwan News editorial on the proposed law]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4104909.stm BBC News: China to enact anti-secession law (2004-12-19)]; [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4303907.stm BBC News: Taiwanese protest at China bill (2005-02-28)]; [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4327997.stm BBC News: China unveils controversial law]; also: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4327997.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4328405.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4346283.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4346629.stm
*[http://www.etaiwannews.com/Taiwan/Politics/2004/12/19/1103423388.htm Taiwan News: Reaction in Taiwan]
*[http://www.people.com.cn/BIG5/shizheng/1026/3062967.html People's Daily: Anti-secession Law will not be applied in Hong Kong and Macao] (in Traditional Chinese)
*[http://news.xinhuanet.com/legal/2004-12/17/content_2348090.htm Xinhua: Anti-sucession Law will not be applied in Hong Kong and Macao] (in Simplified Chinese)
[[Category:Constitutional law]]
[[Category:Laws of the People's Republic of China]]
| 