The owners of Kaohsiung news outlet China VTV Co (中華微視公司) are being investigated for having alleged financial connections with China, and for allegedly conducting a disinformation campaign to create social division and mistrust in Taiwan’s government.
Tsai Yue-ting (蔡岳廷) and his ex-wife, Chang Chiao-lin (張巧琳), were questioned by judicial investigators after evidence reportedly showed that the couple had received 3 million yuan (US$421,354) from its parent company’s offices in Beijing and Hong Kong.
The outlet provides news programming on social media sites including YouTube and Facebook.
Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau
Authorities determined that China VTV was attempting to induce public alarm in a posting titled “Japan readying evacuation of its citizens from Taiwan due to an emergency in the Taiwan Strait.”
Tsai was found to have signed a partnership agreement with China VTV Holding Co chairman Song Tijin (宋體金), who has been linked to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army, the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau said on Friday.
“The agreement called for the company’s entities in China and Hong Kong to provide 3 million yuan for Song’s representative companies to obtain 67 percent shares in Taiwan-registered China VTV Co, the bureau said.
Computers and communication records were seized, and nine people were summoned for questioning, including Tsai and Chang, who reside in New Taipei City.
Tsai was released on NT$90,000 bail and Chang on NT$50,000 bail.
Bureau officials said the two face charges of illegal company registration, illegal funding by a Chinese entity and tax evasion under the Company Act (公司法) and the Business Entity Accounting Act (商業會計法), and of contravening legal statutes governing relations between Taiwan and China.
After looking through computer and phone records, investigators alleged Tsai and Chang were taking instruction from executives in China to establish and operate programming for social media produced by outlets in Beijing and Hong Kong in what the bureau called “propaganda efforts."
RESILIENCE: Deepening bilateral cooperation would extend the peace sustained over the 45 years since the Taiwan Relations Act, Greene said Taiwan-US relations are built on deep economic ties and shared values, American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Director Raymond Greene said yesterday, adding that strengthening supply chain security in critical industries, enhancing societal resilience through cooperation and deepening partnerships are key to ensuring peace and stability for Taiwan in the years ahead. Greene made the remarks at the National Security Youth Forum, organized by National Taiwan University’s National Security and Strategy Studies Institution in Taipei. In his address in Mandarin Chinese, Greene said the Taiwan-US relationship is built on deep economic ties and shared interests, and grows stronger through the enduring friendship between
GAINING STEAM: The scheme initially failed to gather much attention, with only 188 cards issued in its first year, but gained popularity amid the COVID-19 pandemic Applications for the Employment Gold Card have increased in the past few years, with the card having been issued to a total of 13,191 people from 101 countries since its introduction in 2018, the National Development Council (NDC) said yesterday. Those who have received the card have included celebrities, such as former NBA star Dwight Howard and Australian-South Korean cheerleader Dahye Lee, the NDC said. The four-in-one Employment Gold Card combines a work permit, resident visa, Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) and re-entry permit. It was first introduced in February 2018 through the Act Governing Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及雇用法),
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications yesterday said that it would redesign the written portion of the driver’s license exam to make it more rigorous. “We hope that the exam can assess drivers’ understanding of traffic rules, particularly those who take the driver’s license test for the first time. In the past, drivers only needed to cram a book of test questions to pass the written exam,” Minister of Transportation and Communications Chen Shih-kai (陳世凱) told a news conference at the Taoyuan Motor Vehicle Office. “In the future, they would not be able to pass the test unless they study traffic regulations
‘COMING MENACINGLY’: The CDC advised wearing a mask when visiting hospitals or long-term care centers, on public transportation and in crowded indoor venues Hospital visits for COVID-19 last week increased by 113 percent to 41,402, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday, as it encouraged people to wear a mask in three public settings to prevent infection. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Deputy Director Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳) said weekly hospital visits for COVID-19 have been increasing for seven consecutive weeks, and 102 severe COVID-19 cases and 19 deaths were confirmed last week, both the highest weekly numbers this year. CDC physician Lee Tsung-han (李宗翰) said the youngest person hospitalized due to the disease this year was reported last week, a one-month-old baby, who does not