Two Chinese men who were arrested separately during the past two days in Kinmen for illegally entering the country said they wanted to join Taiwan’s army or the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
A 43-year-old man who rowed from Xiamen in China’s Fujian Province to Taiwan was detained by the coastal patrol on Thursday on Taiwan-controlled Little Kinmen (小金門), a small islet located to the west of the main island of Kinmen (Greater Kinmen, 大金門).
The man, surnamed Wang (王), who is a native of Shijiazhuang in Hebei Province, was caught in the early hours of Thursday morning while trying to land on the island with a rubber boat, Kinmen coastal patrol authorities said.
He was carrying only 50 yuan (US$7) and a few daily necessities. No dangerous or controlled items were found on his person.
Wang seemed flustered when arrested, but did not try to escape, according to the patrol officers.
Wang said he traveled from Hebei to Fuzhou and then to Xiamen early last month, where he stayed for a week and bought the rubber boat in a bid to sneak into Taiwan.
“I put to sea near Xiamen’s exhibition center late on Wednesday night and I was caught immediately after setting foot on the island,” he said.
He also said he left his wife, along with a son and a daughter, in his hometown.
When questioned about his motives for coming to Taiwan, Wang claimed that he wanted to join the army — which the arresting officers said was the first time a detained illegal immigrant had given that explanation.
Wang was the second illegal immigrant from China to be arrested by Kinmen coastal patrol personnel in two days.
A 42-year-old man from Hunan Province, surname Chiang (江), was detained at the same spot the previous day, claiming that he wanted to join the KMT.
It was also the first time that an illegal immigrant from China has claimed he wanted to become a KMT member in Taiwan.
The two men have been handed over to the Kinmen Prosecutors’ Office for further investigation on charges of violating Taiwan’s National Security Act (國家安全法).
Kinmen is located 280km to the west of Taiwan, but just a few kilometers off the coast of Fujian Province.
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,912) for advertisements that exceed its approved business scope, requiring the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license may be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter enforcement of Chinese e-commerce platforms and measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan in response to US President Donald Trump’s heavy tariffs on China. The Legislative Yuan’s Finance Committee met today to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report. Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Kuo Kuo-wen (郭國文) said
The Ministry of Economic Affairs has fined Taobao NT$1.2 million (US$36,900) for advertisements that exceeded its approved business scope and ordered the Chinese e-commerce platform to make corrections in the first half of this year or its license would be revoked. Lawmakers have called for stricter supervision of Chinese e-commerce platforms and more stringent measures to prevent China from laundering its goods through Taiwan as US President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on origin laundering. The legislature’s Finance Committee yesterday met to discuss policies to prevent China from dumping goods in Taiwan, inviting government agencies to report on the matter. Democratic Progressive Party
Taiwan and its Pacific ally Tuvalu on Tuesday signed two accords aimed at facilitating bilateral cooperation on labor affairs, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA). The governments inked two agreements in Taipei, witnessed by Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) and visiting Deputy Tuvaluan Prime Minister Panapasi Nelesone, MOFA said in a news release. According to MOFA, the agreements will facilitate cooperation on labor issues and allow the two sides to mutually recognize seafarers’ certificates and related training. Taiwan would also continue to collaborate with Tuvalu across various fields to promote economic prosperity as well as the well-being of their
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), who led efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), was released on bail of NT$80,000 today amid outcry over his decision to wear a Nazi armband to questioning the night before. Sung arrived at the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for questioning in a recall petition forgery case last night wearing a red armband bearing a swastika, carrying a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf and giving a Nazi salute. Sung left the building at 1:15am without the armband and covering the book with his coat. Lee said today that this is a serious
RSS