The captain of Togolese Republic-registered Chinese freighter Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號) was indicted after the ship severed an undersea cable connecting Taiwan proper and Penghu County last month.
The Tainan District Prosecutor’s Office charged the ship’s captain, a Chinese national surnamed Wang (王), for violating the Telecommunications Management Act (電信管理法), but lacked evidence to prosecute the other crew members, who were deported.
Prosecutors said the case involves national security and resulted in substantial losses to Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信).
Photo courtesy of the Coast Guard Administration
Wang severed the cable on purpose, prosecutors said, as the ship’s charts indicated he was near the cable.
Wang dropped the ship’s anchor, then navigated the vessel in a z-shape to damage the cable and disrupt communications between Taiwan and Penghu, prosecutors said.
The damage led to service outages in Penghu, posing public safety risks, prosecutors added.
During questioning, Wang denied deliberately damaging the cable and said the ship dropped anchor due to unstable weather, prosecutors said.
However, prosecutors said his testimony was vague and evidence from the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) showed his actions were out of the norm and demonstrated intent to damage the cable.
The other 7 Chinese crew members on board were repatriated in accordance with the law, prosecutors said, due to insufficient evidence.
Wang knew the cable was an important piece of national communications infrastructure and deliberately sought to damage it, prosecutors said.
Preliminary estimates showed Chunghwa Telecom suffered NT$10 million (US$300,000) in losses from Wang’s alleged actions, violating Article 72 of the Telecommunications Management Act, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors requested that the court impose an appropriate sentence.
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