The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) yesterday accused China of engaging in “cross-border suppression and political manipulation,” after a Chinese public security bureau alleged that it was Taiwanese citizens who led a smuggling operation involving a Chinese-crewed vessel that damaged subsea cables earlier this year.
In June, a Taiwanese court sentenced the Chinese captain of a Togo-registered ship, the Hong Tai 58 (宏泰58號), to three years in jail after finding him guilty of intentionally damaging undersea cables off Taiwan in February, in a case that alarmed officials.
Yesterday, the public security bureau in Weihai in China’s Shandong Province said its investigations into the incident showed that two Taiwanese men were behind a multi-vessel operation that was illegally transporting frozen goods into China. The Chinese authorities’ findings came after interviewing seven Chinese crew members of the Hong Tai 58.
Photo: Chung Li-hua, Taipei Times
The Weihai public security bureau issued a bounty of up to 250,000 yuan (US$35,370) for information or assistance regarding the two Taiwanese, surnamed Chien and Chen, adding that they have been on a Chinese customs office wanted list since 2014.
The MAC rejected the finding in a statement issued yesterday.
“Regarding the incident involving the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai 58 cargo ship, which damaged the third submarine cable between Taiwan and the outlying islands of Kinmen and Matsu, it was confirmed that the Chinese national captain of the vessel intentionally damaged the undersea cable,” the council said.
“The criminal behavior and related evidence have been clearly established. The case has been thoroughly investigated and concluded by Taiwan’s judicial authorities, and the defendant has been sentenced to three years in prison,” the council said, adding that the defendant is serving their sentence.
“The Chinese Communist Party [CCP] does not have jurisdiction over Taiwan. If the CCP’s Ministry of Public Security has concrete evidence, it can provide that evidence to Taiwan’s law enforcement agencies to cooperate in preventing cross-strait crimes. However, in the absence of concrete evidence, publicly disclosing names and offering rewards is not a civilized approach; it is merely another form of cross-border suppression and political manipulation,” the council said.
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