MAC warns of legal consequences over possessing Chinese IDs

Taipei, Feb. 11 (CNA) Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) reiterated Tuesday that active military personnel and civil servants who apply for Chinese identity documents will face the full force of the law, including potentially being stripped of citizenship, after a soldier was found to hold a Chinese ID card.

"The MAC has recently convened meetings with relevant agencies and instructed them to promote awareness that active military personnel, civil servants and public-school teachers are prohibited from applying for household registration in China, as well as Chinese ID cards, permanent residence permits, or residence permits," the MAC said in a statement.

The council added that those violating the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (the Cross-Strait Act) would face the full force of the law.

This includes having their Republic of China (Taiwan's official name) household registration canceled and losing their citizenship, according to the act.

The act also stipulates that individuals could lose their ability to serve military service or hold public office.

The MAC statement came after a navy soldier, surnamed Yang (楊), was found to be in possession of a Chinese ID card.

It said that a Ministry of National Defense administrative investigation into the incident is ongoing.

The Naval Fleet Command issued a news release on Monday, saying that the soldier had informed the Navy that his mother, originally from China, had obtained a Chinese ID card for him without his knowledge.

The command said it has assisted Yang in submitting an application to the National Immigration Agency (NIA) expressing his intent to retain his Republic of China nationality.

The command added that the NIA "preliminarily classified" Yang as a special case and said it would "handle subsequent matters per the NIA's review findings and legal procedures."

Yang was initially a conscript undergoing military training before he enlisted as a voluntary service member, the command said. Local media reported that he serves in the Navy's 168th Fleet aboard a Chi Yang-class frigate.

According to Chinese law, a household registration is required to obtain a Chinese ID, suggesting that Yang possesses both.

Meanwhile, the MAC said in the statement that businesses helping Taiwanese citizens apply for Chinese ID cards are violating Article 33-1 of the Cross-Strait Act for "unauthorized cooperation" with the Chinese Communist Party-related agencies.

"The MAC has already requested relevant authorities carry out an investigation," the council added.

The statement was in response to a Monday report by the local Chinese-language newspaper Liberty Times, which cited an anonymous government source saying that at least five businesses in Taiwan and China are helping Taiwanese citizens apply for Chinese ID cards.

Of the two businesses doing so in Taiwan, one is a travel agency in Tainan and the other is a consulting firm in New Taipei. Both reportedly offer three-day tours to China for the purpose of applying for Chinese ID cards, according to the report.