Taipei,TAIWAN–As of Nov. 19, 104 legislators and city council members had joined a petition to the National Communications Commission (NCC) to investigate the intermittent blockage of New Tang Dynasty Television’s Asia-Pacific signal from Sept. 17 through Oct. 2, a period of time corresponding to the Communist regime’s anniversary celebration.

New Tang Dynasty Asia-Pacific Television is an independent Chinese television network which broadcasts on the Taiwan-based Chunghwa Telecom satellite.

The investigation into the origin of the interfering signals is ongoing. Petitioners are asking the NCC to hold a public hearing when the results are known.

“It is the first time in Taiwan that the signal of a civilian TV station has been abnormally blocked for such a long time,” the petition states. Moreover, petitioners stress that such a breach is directly related to freedom of the press, freedom of communications, and national defense in Taiwan.

The broadcasts during the time slots of signal blockage focused on people’s lives, human rights, and security issues in China.

Others renting the same satellite include the National Fire Agency, the Water Resources Agency, the Central Weather Bureau, and the Ministry of National Defense.

Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan has ordered the Ministry of Transportation and Communication, the NCC, and Chunghwa Telecom to cooperate in conducting a transparent investigation that will be completed as soon as possible.

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