References to Hong Kong entertainment tycoon Charles Heung (向華強) have been found in declassified records from the now-defunct Taiwan Garrison Command, which would affect Heung’s immigration application, a source said.
Heung has applied for immigration on the basis that his wife, Tiffany Chan (陳嵐), is Taiwanese.
However, national security officials believe that Heung is a potential security risk, as he and his son, Jackie Heung (向佐), both have ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), the source said on Sunday.
In declassified records, Charles Heung was alleged to have connections with the Bamboo Union gang, the source said.
A report from Dec. 25 last year said that Charles Heung’s family has links with Hong Kong’s largest criminal organization, the Sun Yee On.
In 1994, Charles Heung served as honorary vice president of the China Film Foundation, which makes patriotic films for the CCP and the Chinese Ministry of National Defense. He was the first Hong Konger to hold the position.
Charles Heung, who is chairman of Hong Kong film production company China Star Entertainment, has been refused entry into Taiwan on numerous occasions — for example, to attend the Golden Horse Awards — due to his alleged ties with Sun Yee On, the source said.
While in Taiwan in 1972, he was prosecuted by the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office for illegal foreign currency trading, the source said, adding that this also likely contributed to the authorities refusing him entry to Taiwan.
“He is married to a Taiwanese, but according to Hong Kong and Macau-related regulations, his past criminal behavior would take precedence over marriage considerations for the purpose of immigration,” the source said.
The law stipulates that those suspected of involvement with violent organizations or terrorist groups, suspected of involvement in major crimes, or who have held positions in Chinese government or military agencies, are not eligible for immigration, the source said.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai