China imposes further sanctions on Taiwan’s U.S envoy

China has imposed further sanctions on Taiwan’s de facto ambassador to the United States, Hsiao Bi-Khim.

State media reported on Friday that the sanctions, announced by China’s Taiwan Affairs Office, prohibit Hsiao and family members from entering the mainland, Hong Kong and Macau.

The sanctions also prohibit investors and firms related to Hsiao from cooperating with mainland organisations and individuals.

They come after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen’s meeting with U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy during a stopover in the United States this week.

“Wow, the PRC (People’s Republic of China) just sanctioned me again, for the second time,” Hsiao tweeted in response to the announcement.

China also imposed similar sanctions on The Prospect Foundation, which is headed by a former Taiwanese foreign minister, and the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats, a multinational alliance Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) co-founded in 1993.

China’s Taiwan Affairs Office accused the institutions of promoting the idea of “Taiwan independence” internationally, state media reported.

Also Read: China imposes sanctions on US officials over Xinjiang

Last August, after former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan, China imposed sanctions including an entry ban on seven Taiwanese officials and lawmakers including Hsiao whom it accused of being “independence diehards”, drawing condemnation from the democratically governed island.

China considers Taiwan its own territory and not a separate country. Taiwan’s government disputes China’s claim.

Chinese sanctions will have a little practical impact as senior Taiwanese officials do not visit China while Chinese courts do not have jurisdiction in Taiwan.

DPP lawmaker Chao Tien-lin told reporters the sanctions on Hsiao were “absurd”. “This will have no impact on her,” he told reporters at parliament.

Zainab Sa’id