Former lawmaker Lo Chih-ming (羅志明) and retired rear admiral Hsia Fu-hsiang (夏復翔) have been indicted on espionage charges for allegedly developing a spy network for China and inviting military retirees to meet Chinese government officials.
Kaohsiung prosecutors announced the indictment yesterday, citing evidence and witness testimony that Lo — a former legislator for the Taiwan Solidarity Union — and retired naval rear admiral Hsia began their efforts in 2013 after being recruited by the Chinese military and United Front Work Department.
Lo and Hsia were charged for contravening the National Security Act (國家安全法) on evidence of inviting and accompanying several retired military officers, 48 ranked as generals or major generals, on 13 trips to China from 2013 to 2019, Kaohsiung deputy head prosecutor Hsu Hung-ju (徐弘儒) said.
Photo: CNA
Many were lured by financial incentives and passed confidential material to China, among other espionage activities, while Lo and Hsia built spy networks, Hsu said.
Lo and Hsia allegedly led the trips to events organized by Beijing, including a gathering for alumni of the Whampoa Military Academy, the Zhuhai International Airshow and golf competitions.
The trips were paid for by Beijing, and Taiwanese military personnel were treated like VIPs while attending banquets and conferences, Hsu said.
Lo befriended Hsia while playing golf together, and through Lo’s business connections, he became acquainted with Li Ying (李鷹), a Chinese biotechnology firm chairman who had extensive ties with the Chinese military, investigators said.
As deputy head of the navy’s Political Warfare Section, Hsia attended events in China and was introduced to former Chinese United Front Work Department section heads Hao Yifong (郝一峰) and Fang Xinsheng (方新生), Hsu said.
Through these connections, Lo and Hsia were recruited and paid to bring retired generals and other officers to junket trips to China, where they were likely influenced by Beijing officials and convinced to conduct espionage, Hsu said.
Separately, Kaohsiung City Councilor Chang Po-yang (張博洋) of the Taiwan Statebuilding Party accused the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) and other ministries of neglecting to draft laws to prevent elected officials from attending political meetings in an enemy state.
Chang said he was referring to Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) politicians visiting China to attend Whampoa Military Academy anniversary functions, along with other junket trips to China.
Most recently, KMT Taoyuan City Council Speaker Chiu Yi-sheng (邱奕勝) led a 24-member delegation of city councilors and their spouses to Shanghai, and met United Front Work Office Shanghai chairman Chen Tong (陳通) on Tuesday, Chang said.
There was also a trip to Beijing last month led by Kaohsiung borough warden Liu Chi-fang (劉啟芳), also of the KMT, in which a 52-member group comprised of other wardens and community organization directors attended a conference chaired by China’s top Taiwan Affairs Office official, Song Tao (宋濤), Chang said.
He criticized MAC for saying that Taiwan has no law banning officials from such engagement with China, saying that lack of such a law allowed officials to meet with officials of an enemy state.
Three batches of banana sauce imported from the Philippines were intercepted at the border after they were found to contain the banned industrial dye Orange G, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said yesterday. From today through Sept. 2 next year, all seasoning sauces from the Philippines are to be subject to the FDA’s strictest border inspection, meaning 100 percent testing for illegal dyes before entry is allowed, it said in a statement. Orange G is an industrial coloring agent that is not permitted for food use in Taiwan or internationally, said Cheng Wei-chih (鄭維智), head of the FDA’s Northern Center for
The Chinese military has built landing bridge ships designed to expand its amphibious options for a potential assault on Taiwan, but their combat effectiveness is limited due to their high vulnerability, a defense expert said in an analysis published on Monday. Shen Ming-shih (沈明室), a research fellow at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, said that the deployment of such vessels as part of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy’s East Sea Fleet signals a strong focus on Taiwan. However, the ships are highly vulnerable to precision strikes, which means they could be destroyed before they achieve their intended
LOOKING NORTH: The base would enhance the military’s awareness of activities in the Bashi Channel, which China Coast Guard ships have been frequenting, an expert said The Philippine Navy on Thursday last week inaugurated a forward operating base in the country’s northern most province of Batanes, which at 185km from Taiwan would be strategically important in a military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The Philippine Daily Inquirer quoted Northern Luzon Command Commander Lieutenant General Fernyl Buca as saying that the base in Mahatao would bolster the country’s northern defenses and response capabilities. The base is also a response to the “irregular presence this month of armed” of China Coast Guard vessels frequenting the Bashi Channel in the Luzon Strait just south of Taiwan, the paper reported, citing a
UNDER PRESSURE: The report cited numerous events that have happened this year to show increased coercion from China, such as military drills and legal threats The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) aims to reinforce its “one China” principle and the idea that Taiwan belongs to the People’s Republic of China by hosting celebratory events this year for the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, the “retrocession” of Taiwan and the establishment of the UN, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said in its latest report to the Legislative Yuan. Taking advantage of the significant anniversaries, Chinese officials are attempting to assert China’s sovereignty over Taiwan through interviews with international news media and cross-strait exchange events, the report said. Beijing intends to reinforce its “one China” principle
RSS