Taipei [Taiwan] August 19 (ANI): Regular inspections are set to begin next year to address the issue of military personnel, civil servants, and public-school educators possessing Chinese citizenship or household registration, according to a report by Taipei Times citing the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC).

Article 9-1 of the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area states that Taiwanese individuals who obtain Chinese household registration or a Chinese passport will lose their Taiwanese citizenship and be barred from working in the military, public service, or public education, as reported. In order to identify and prevent the unauthorised employment of individuals holding Chinese ID cards or residential permits, systematic inspections will be implemented starting on January 1 of next year, the council indicated, as noted by Taipei Times.

Recruits or transferred military personnel, civil servants, and public-school instructors will need to comply with these inspections; failure to do so could lead to a suspension of their qualification assessments and their employment or reassignment, in line with the regulations and their employment agreements, it was explained. Considering the size of the civil service and the diversity of its personnel, the regular inspection procedure will be introduced gradually, the council stated. In the initial phase, only essential personnel from the military, civil service, and public education institutions will undergo regular inspections, while others will be exempt, according to the report from Taipei Times.

For state-owned, partially privatised, and government-invested or organised companies, inspections will only focus on appointments authorised by the Executive Yuan, ministries, and local authorities, the council mentioned. In public schools at all levels, inspections will be confined to full-time educational professionals as defined by relevant laws, such as the Teaching Personnel Hiring Act, according to the report.

The council remarked that Beijing has gone to great lengths to undermine the long-standing policy of single citizenship upheld by both Taiwan and China to advance its 'united front' objectives. This policy enables Taiwanese citizens to acquire Chinese citizenship or household registration while retaining their Taiwanese ID cards, thereby not only creating confusion regarding their national identity and violating Taiwan's laws but also posing a threat to Taiwan's national security, as stated in the report by Taipei Times. (ANI)