Taiwan faces an unprecedented threat from China in the form of intelligence operations and social infiltration, the Washington-based Global Taiwan Institute (GTI) wrote in a report, urging tougher measures to deal with the problem.
The GTI recommended imposing stricter penalties for espionage and suggested that Taiwan establish legal frameworks requiring people acting on behalf of foreign entities to register and publicly disclose their activities and affiliations to enhance transparency.
The report came after recent comments from President William Lai (賴清德), who suggested tightening restrictions on Chinese tourists, Chinese residents and civil servants.
“China is already a foreign hostile force, as defined in our Anti-Infiltration Act,” The Straits Times on March 14 cited Lai as saying the day before.
If the government recognizes China as a hostile force, then it would be apt to make travel to China illegal for current or recently retired public-sector employees and military personnel. Arguably, the itineraries and movements of those visiting from China should also be highly scrutinized.
Naturally, the deep economic interdependence of Taiwan and China means that efforts to curb Chinese influence in Taiwan would face obstacles. While several countries — including Taiwan and the US — have voiced intentions to economically decouple from China, progress has been limited. Decoupling remains challenging due to China’s central role in global supply chains, its status as a major investor worldwide and its substantial holdings of foreign debt.
The government’s hands are tied, as taking action against influencers producing pro-China content leaves it open to accusations of infringing on free speech — a fundamental freedom that distinguishes Taiwan from authoritarian China.
Meanwhile, Taiwanese businesses that have operations in China would be subject to the whims and demands of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which would encourage businesses to lobby politicians to enact policies favorable to the CCP. Resisting the demands of those businesses might not be in the government’s best interest, given the large amount of taxes they pay and the number of people they employ.
However, that is not to say that Taiwan should do nothing about China’s acts of espionage and infiltration. The best approach might be greater transparency and stricter punishments for the most egregious contraventions, as suggested by the GTI report.
Those producing pro-China content online should be required to publicly disclose their funding sources, while officials found guilty of intelligence gathering or recruitment for China should face a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. In addition, they could have all their assets confiscated and be barred from leaving Taiwan after serving their sentence — measures designed to prevent them from stashing assets in China and relocating there upon release. Such strict penalties would serve as a strong deterrent against collusion with Beijing.
It should go without saying that any public sector worker or members of the military found colluding with China should be stripped of all commendations and have their pensions forfeited. However, in a democratic nation such as Taiwan, where personal privacy is protected, detecting collusion with China remains a major challenge — and Beijing is aware of that. People can easily communicate with Chinese handlers through encrypted online platforms, meet with CCP proxies operating within Taiwan or rendezvous with Chinese agents in other countries under the pretense of tourism.
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