The two were convicted of murder and kidnapping and sentenced to death. The sentences were only carried out after a 10-year-long appeals process, which many considered a face-saving effort by the Taiwan government after hailing as heroes such a dangerous pair of criminals.
Another example of a not-so-heroic defector is Lee Shien-pin (李顯斌). As an air force pilot, he defected to Taiwan on Nov. 11, 1965 in an IL-28 bomber, piloted by himself, from Hangchow, the capital of Chekiang Province, to Taoyuan with two other pilots ? Lee Chai-wang (李才旺) and Lien Pao-sheng (廉保生).
By the time the plane arrived in Taiwan, Lien, for reasons which have remained a mystery, was dead. Lee Chai-wang eventually went to the US, where he became a permanent resident in 1983.
Lee Shien-pin was rewarded with 3,500 ounces of gold. Lee Chai-wang received half that sum, and a further 1,750 ounces was reserved by the government for the family of Lien, should they choose to flee to Taiwan.
In 1991, Lee Shien-pin, however, apparently unsatisfied with the size of his reward, claimed that he had forced both Lee Chai-wang and Lien to come to Taiwan with him, so their 3,500 ounces of gold should belong to him. The defense ministry rejected his argument.
After enjoying a life of luxury in Taiwan, Lee suddenly went back to China in December 1991 where he was arrested immediately, before being sentenced to 15 years in jail for treason.
He was released on parole on May 13 this year because of serious stomach cancer. In an interview with Taiwanese reporters, however, he declined to talk about his political loyalties.
Taiwan's people were not impressed by the defectors' actions.
"I felt like I'd been cheated when I learned that these so-called heroes committed such crimes or eventually went back to China," said Lin Shu-feng (林淑鳳), a 26-year-old kindergarten teacher.
Lin said that, having grown up in an atmosphere of fierce patriotism, she had once felt that "freedom seekers" were brave and worthy of great respect, but she increasingly doubted this as she grew up.
"Now I think that the huge rewards were unnecessary because a normal life like those led by ordinary, free people in Taiwan would be the greatest possible reward for them if they truly wished to seek democracy and freedom," Lin said.
The end of confrontation between Taiwan and China perhaps puts a different perspective on such events.
"The glory days of defectors are over," said Hsieh the history student.
"Now we should see events of this kind from a different angle: depoliticize them and consider human rights," he said.
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