CHINA prepared to pass an anti-secession Bill aimed at Taiwan and a big increase in its defence budget as parliament convenes for its annual meeting in Beijing today.

The Bill is intended to provide the legal framework to support Beijing’s opposition to moves by Taiwan to make its de facto independence permanent. Taiwan has been ruled separately since 1949 but is claimed by Beijing as part of its territory.

The move was criticised in Taiwan, which also viewed with alarm Beijing’s plan to increase China’s military budget by 12.6 per cent this year, the latest in a series of double-digit increases. Chen Shui-bian, the Taiwanese President who leans towards independence, has proposed “anti-annexation” law and might hold a referendum to counter China’s move.

China’s anti-secession Bill will be passed by the full session of the National People’s Congress (NPC), which continues until March 14 and is attended by delegates from across China.

The NPC is usually free of surprises. Laws drafted behind closed doors by the Communist Party’s top cadres are given rubber stamp approval. But the profile of the congress is elevated this year because Taiwan will be at the top of the agenda when Wen Jiabao, the Premier, delivers his annual address. He describes the anti-secession Bill as a big step towards stifling growing independence forces on the island.

Beijing asserts that Taiwan is a renegade territory and has not ruled out reunification by force. Beijing has hundreds of missiles positioned along the Strait of Taiwan.

The Chinese refusal to renounce the use of force against Taiwan will be underlined by the 2005 budget report to the NPC, presented by Jin Renqing, the Finance Minister, which calls for a 12.6 per cent increase in military spending this year. Other senior leaders have rallied behind the proposal. Wu Bangguo, the leading legislator, said that anti-secession legislation reflects the will of the Chinese people.

“No sovereign state will allow actions of secession, and every sovereign state has the right to take necessary means to safeguard national sovereignty,” Mr Wu said.

The proposal has Washington worried about raised tensions in the region and the Taiwanese are displeased. The President of Taiwan described the law as a “dark cloud overshadowing the atmosphere of reconciliation”.

“The anti-secession law is a blatant attempt to undermine the status quo in the Taiwan Strait,” he said. The law is expected to sail through the congress at the end of its ten-day session. The body will also accept the resignation of Jiang Zemin as Chairman of the Army and replace him with President Hu. The NPC also offers a talking shop to discuss other issues, including fighting corruption and boosting the income of farmers to help to offset the gap in wealth between rural and urban China.

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