Allegations of spying against National Police University associate professor Wu Chang-yu (吳彰裕) are only the tip of the iceberg, members of the Falun Gong movement said on Saturday.
Wu, who teaches Chinese political history, was arraigned for questioning on Thursday on charges of allegedly spying for China and passing information to Chinese officials about Chinese dissidents, pro-Tibetan activists and the Falun Gong movement in Taiwan.
Wu told prosecutors the information he offered was not confidential and was readily available from multiple sources.
According to National Taiwan University economics professor Chang Ching-hsi (張清溪), who also serves as the chairman of the Taiwanese Falun Dafa Association, the personal information of individuals who openly criticize China for its oppression of Falun Gong practitioners is easily accessible and computer hacking attacks on Web sites related to Falun Gong are common.
The Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS) in Shanghai recently detained a Falun Gong member who was not an activist, Chang said, adding that the security officials knew detailed information about the member and recited them to the detained man to intimidate him.
China is using its power to gather information and Taiwanese should be on guard, Chang said.
Ko Yi-chun (柯宜君), another Falun Gong practitioner, said she was present in 2007 when Hong Kong police detained 500 Falun Gong members at the airport who had gone to the territory on the 10th anniversary of its hand over to Chinese control.
All those arrested were returned to Taiwan.
The incident became ever more controversial after Falun Gong members filed an appeal with the Hong Kong Supreme Court, but their appeal was overturned, which some analysts said was a warning sign that the independence of the territory’s judicial system was regressing.
Ko said that after an immigration officer had scanned her passport information into the computer, a police officer came over and took her into a questioning room without giving a reason, adding that after about 10 hours of detention, they wrapped her up in a blanket and forcibly sent her back to Taiwan.
Falun Gong is very liberal and there is no ceremony conducted upon joining nor is there a list of practitioners, Ko said, adding that members are free to come and go as they please.
There are rumors that the Chinese Communist Party has drawn up a blacklist using personal information gathered through “special” channels, which enabled Hong Kong police to accurately pinpoint Taiwanese who have associations with Falun Gong, Ko said.
Translated by Jake Chung, Staff writer
‘CROWN JEWEL’: Washington ‘can delay and deter’ Chinese President Xi Jinping’s plans for Taiwan, but it is ‘a very delicate situation there,’ the secretary of state said US President Donald Trump is opposed to any change to Taiwan’s “status quo” by force or extortion and would maintain that policy, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Hugh Hewitt Show host on Wednesday. The US’ policy is to maintain Taiwan’s “status quo” and to oppose any changes in the situation by force or extortion, Rubio said. Hewitt asked Rubio about the significance of Trump earlier this month speaking with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) at the White House, a meeting that Hewitt described as a “big deal.” Asked whether the meeting was an indication of the
‘RELATIVELY STRONG LANGUAGE’: An expert said the state department has not softened its language on China and was ‘probably a little more Taiwan supportive’ China’s latest drills near Taiwan on Monday were “brazen and irresponsible threats,” a US Department of State spokesperson said on Tuesday, while reiterating Washington’s decades-long support of Taipei. “China cannot credibly claim to be a ‘force for stability in a turbulent world’ while issuing brazen and irresponsible threats toward Taiwan,” the unnamed spokesperson said in an e-mailed response to media queries. Washington’s enduring commitment to Taiwan will continue as it has for 45 years and the US “will continue to support Taiwan in the face of China’s military, economic, informational and diplomatic pressure campaign,” the e-mail said. “Alongside our international partners, we firmly
KAOHSIUNG CEREMONY: The contract chipmaker is planning to build 5 fabs in the southern city to gradually expand its 2-nanometer chip capacity Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, yesterday confirmed that it plans to hold a ceremony on March 31 to unveil a capacity expansion plan for its most advanced 2-nanometer chips in Kaohsiung, demonstrating its commitment to further investment at home. The ceremony is to be hosted by TSMC cochief operating officer Y.P. Chyn (秦永沛). It did not disclose whether Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and high-ranking government officials would attend the ceremony. More details are to be released next week, it said. The chipmaker’s latest move came after its announcement earlier this month of an additional US$100 billion
Authorities yesterday elaborated on the rules governing Employment Gold Cards after a US cardholder was barred from entering Taiwan for six years after working without a permit during a 2023 visit. American YouTuber LeLe Farley was barred after already being approved for an Employment Gold Card, he said in a video published on his channel on Saturday. Farley, who has more than 420,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, was approved for his Gold Card last month, but was told at a check-in counter at the Los Angeles International Airport that he could not enter Taiwan. That was because he previously participated in two
RSS