Taiwan secessionists to be punished by law

Measures include mainland travel ban, checks on organizations and companies

The Chinese mainland will punish the stubborn secessionists on a blacklist who engage in seeking "Taiwan independence" in accordance with the law, Zhu Fenglian, a spokeswoman of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said in a statement on Friday.

Su Tseng-chang, head of Taiwan's executive body; Yu Shyi-kun, who is in charge of the local "legislature" in Taiwan; and Joseph Wu Jau-shieh, the island's leader of external affairs, are included on the list, according to the statement.

Zhu said that for some time a very small number of stubborn "Taiwan independence" secessionists have been inciting cross-Straits confrontation, maliciously attacking and slandering the mainland and colluding with foreign forces to split the country.

"They have seriously undermined cross-Straits relations, peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits, and the common interests of compatriots on both sides of the Straits and the fundamental interests of the Chinese nation," she said.

The punitive measures will include banning the Taiwan secessionists and their families from entering the mainland and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, Zhu said.

Organizations related to them will be restricted from cooperating with organizations and individuals on the mainland, and enterprises related to them and their financial backers are not allowed to make profits on the mainland, Zhu said.

She warned the secessionists and said "those who forget their ancestors, betray the motherland or split the nation will never come to a good end and will surely be spurned by the people and judged by history".

The mainland will pursue criminal responsibility for the secessionists in accordance with the law, and they will be held accountable for life, she said.

In a separate statement on Friday, Zhu urged the United States government to stop making remarks about supporting "Taiwan independence" after US officials backed Taiwan's attempts to be included in the United Nations system.

Last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on all UN member states to support Taiwan's "robust and meaningful" participation in the UN system.

The United Nations General Assembly reinstated the People's Republic of China as the sole representative of China through Resolution 2758 in 1971.

Resolution 2758 has resolved the issue of China's representation in the UN politically, legally and procedurally, Zhu said, adding that "there is no such thing as Taiwan's participation in the UN".

"The US is challenging the consensus of the international community and putting itself in opposition to the majority of members of the UN," she said.

Zhu said the US government has repeatedly stated that it does not support Taiwan's participation in international organizations that are limited to sovereign states.

The recent remarks by the US seriously violated the basic norms governing international relations, the one-China policy and the provisions of the Three China-US Joint Communiques, as well as its longstanding commitments to China, she said.

"The remarks sent a serious wrong signal to the Taiwan secessionists and were another manifestation of the US' repeated breaches of trust in the international arena," she added.

Zhu said such attempts by the US would only expose the ugly side of those who ignore international justice and national credibility.

She also urged the Democratic Progressive Party authorities in Taiwan to abandon the illusion of relying on the US for "independence".

"Any act aimed at undermining the one-China principle and splitting the country will only end in failure," she added.