A husband and wife affiliated with the China Unification Promotion Party (CUPP) were indicted yesterday for allegedly receiving NT$74 million (US$2.32 million) from China to make radio and digital media propaganda to promote the Chinese government’s political agenda and influence the outcome of Taiwan’s elections.
Chang Meng-chung (張孟崇) and his wife, Hung Wen-ting (洪文婷), allegedly received a total of NT$74 million from China between 2021 and last year to promote candidates favored by Beijing, contravening the Anti-Infiltration Act (反滲透法) and election laws, the Chiayi District Prosecutors’ Office said.
The couple acted as Beijing’s propaganda mouthpiece by disparaging Hong Kong democracy activists and Falun Gong groups in Taiwan, boasting about China’s military power and urging Taiwan’s troops to surrender in the event of an invasion, the indictment said.
Photo: CNA
A task force led by Chiayi prosecutor Lin Chung-pin (林仲斌), in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice and the Chiayi City and Pingtung County investigation bureaus, searched 24 locations and seized mobile phones, computers, financial records and other evidence, the office said.
Judicial investigators said the couple received NT$74 million in total from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) in Beijing and the TAO branch office in China’s Fujian Province.
Chang allegedly made current affairs and political talk show videos for digital platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, Douyin (抖音) and other public media Web sites to broadcast pro-Beijing propaganda content, prosecutors said.
Over the past few years, the couple attempted to influence this year’s legislative and presidential elections, a recall vote against a pan-green camp legislator in 2022, the referendums in 2021, such as on the prohibition of ractopamine, and promoted candidates and themes favored by the Chinese government, prosecutors said.
“Hostile foreign forces have for a long time taken advantage of our nation’s freedom, multi-party democracy and open society with a tolerance for different viewpoints,” the indictment said.
“Using ‘united front’ works, they sought to infiltrate the nation and create social strife and division, disseminate disinformation, manipulate public opinion and interfere in Taiwan’s elections, such as attempting to recall elected politicians and influence referendums,” the indictment said.
‘NO SECURITY RISK’: The Railway Bureau reassured the public that the technicians’ activities were limited to technical guidance and did not involve sensitive systems The Railway Bureau yesterday said it had invited eight Chinese technicians to assist with an airport MRT construction project. The bureau issued the confirmation after an Internet user said Chinese nationals had entered the construction zone of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 3 project. They asked why “individuals from an enemy state” were allowed access to such a major national infrastructure project, which raised serious concerns over Taiwan’s industrial safety, sensitive systems and information security. The bureau’s Northern Region Engineering Branch Office said subcontractor Taiwan Handle Industrial Co (台灣手把工業) of the Taoyuan airport MRT’s “Contract No. CU05 Project A14 Station Civil, MEP &
A US uncrewed surface vessel (USV) encountered multiple Chinese warships during an autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait, US defense company Seasats said in a statement on Wednesday. Seasats announced that a Lightfish USV had completed the first autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait. Over five days, the USV traversed the entire length of the Strait while constantly monitoring surface vessel traffic, the company said. The Lightfish encountered multiple Chinese warships, one of which was a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Type 056 corvette, it said. The Chinese vessels were operating “well within Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone without transmitting their identity via the
Taiwan is still in the process of assessing the possibility of recruiting workers from Eswatini, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday, adding that its goal is to help Eswatini upgrade its vocational training centers. If there are plans to recruit workers from Eswatini, safeguarding national security, protecting public health and ensuring the employment rights of Taiwanese would be prerequisites, Department of West Asian and African Affairs Director-General Yen Chia-liang (顏嘉良) told a news conference. Key considerations would also include filling labor shortages in specific industries, and fostering bilateral professional and technical exchanges, he said. Yen was asked about the progress of labor
The nation’s usually punctual high-speed rail system yesterday was hit by major disruptions after all scheduled services were canceled and replaced with three hourly trains offering only non-reserved seating, affecting more than 200,000 passengers. Preliminary findings indicate the disruption was caused by a faulty power module in a track switch control cabinet, Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) said, adding that as a full system inspection could only be conducted after operations end for the day, a decision on whether normal service would resume today would be announced before the first train departs. During a routine inspection early yesterday, a switch signal abnormality
RSS