A former Chinese student detained on Friday on suspicion of espionage likes Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) and collects artifacts relating to him, according to one of the man’s friends, who is a spokesman for the pro-unification New Party.
The Taipei District Court detained Zhou Hongxu (周泓旭) for allegedly trying to gather classified information from schools and government offices in violation of the National Security Act (國家安全法).
Investigators said that Zhou allegedly tried to contact a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official whom he met while studying in Taiwan and tried to persuade him to pass over classified information by promising him a free trip.
Zhou has denied the accusations, but prosecutors asked that he be detained, a request the court granted over fears that Zhou would flee and collude with others.
New Party spokesman Wang Ping-chung (王炳忠) said that Zhou likes the Republic of China and admires Chiang.
Zhou, who was enrolled in a master of business administration program at Taipei-based National Chengchi University from September 2012 to July last year, once noted that the university was founded by Chiang and said he felt a special attachment to it, Wang said.
Wang said he became acquainted with Zhou at a seminar at National Taiwan University, adding that later, as both were opposed to the Sunflower movement protests of 2014, they sometimes exchanged views over lunch.
The Sunflower movement protested the rapid passage of the cross-strait service trade agreement by the then-Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) government.
Wang expressed surprised that Zhou was accused of espionage, but said that as judicial authorities are investigating the case, he could not comment further.
National Chengchi University confirmed that during his admission process, Zhou had told them he participated in Communist Youth League of China activities.
However, the school said it does not treat students differently because of their religious beliefs or political stances and hopes that the public will not see Chinese students in a poorer light because of an isolated case, university chief secretary Wang Wen-chieh (王文杰) said.
According to Zhou’s Facebook profile, he is from China’s Liaoning Province.
Zhou entered the department of banking and finance at New Taipei City’s Tamkang University as an exchange student in 2009.
People who studied with Zhou at that time expressed disbelief that he could be a spy, saying that he was a “bookworm” and “a good-student type” who would stand up and salute his teachers in every class.
Deputy Minister of Education Tsai Ching-hwa (蔡清華) said that the ministry has consistently said that Chinese students must abide by Taiwan’s laws.
“That is basic respect” and Taiwanese students studying in China must also obey that nation’s laws, Tsai said.
With regards to whether Chinese students should divulge their political backgrounds during the admission process, he said that the matter would need to be discussed with related agencies.
A National Taiwan University student said there is nothing unusual about Zhou being a member of the Communist Youth League of China, because 99 percent of Chinese students are members, and usually join when they are in junior or senior-high school.
In response to media queries, Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) urged people not to overreact to China’s spying activities, saying that if China has sent students to collect information on the nation, the CIA must have done so too.
“These things happen. We should not reverse our policies or tar [Chinese students] with the same brush over one or two students [assigned by China to perform spy activities],” Ko said.
“There are existing policies on enrolling Chinese students. I do not think that it [the incident] is a major deal. There must be some CIA agents under the guise of students on our campuses, too,” he added.
Additional reporting by Sean Lin
The High Prosecutors’ Office yesterday withdrew an appeal against the acquittal of a former bank manager 22 years after his death, marking Taiwan’s first instance of prosecutors rendering posthumous justice to a wrongfully convicted defendant. Chu Ching-en (諸慶恩) — formerly a manager at the Taipei branch of BNP Paribas — was in 1999 accused by Weng Mao-chung (翁茂鍾), then-president of Chia Her Industrial Co, of forging a request for a fixed deposit of US$10 million by I-Hwa Industrial Co, a subsidiary of Chia Her, which was used as collateral. Chu was ruled not guilty in the first trial, but was found guilty
DEADLOCK: As the commission is unable to forum a quorum to review license renewal applications, the channel operators are not at fault and can air past their license date The National Communications Commission (NCC) yesterday said that the Public Television Service (PTS) and 36 other television and radio broadcasters could continue airing, despite the commission’s inability to meet a quorum to review their license renewal applications. The licenses of PTS and the other channels are set to expire between this month and June. The National Communications Commission Organization Act (國家通訊傳播委員會組織法) stipulates that the commission must meet the mandated quorum of four to hold a valid meeting. The seven-member commission currently has only three commissioners. “We have informed the channel operators of the progress we have made in reviewing their license renewal applications, and
Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Huang Kuo-chang (黃國昌) yesterday appealed to the authorities to release former Taipei mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) from pretrial detention amid conflicting reports about his health. The TPP at a news conference on Thursday said that Ko should be released to a hospital for treatment, adding that he has blood in his urine and had spells of pain and nausea followed by vomiting over the past three months. Hsieh Yen-yau (謝炎堯), a retired professor of internal medicine and Ko’s former teacher, said that Ko’s symptoms aligned with gallstones, kidney inflammation and potentially dangerous heart conditions. Ko, charged with
Taiwan-based publisher Li Yanhe (李延賀) has been sentenced to three years in prison, fined 50,000 yuan (US$6,890) in personal assets and deprived political rights for one year for “inciting secession” in China, China's Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said today. The Shanghai First Intermediate People’s Court announced the verdict on Feb. 17, Chen said. The trial was conducted lawfully, and in an open and fair manner, he said, adding that the verdict has since come into legal effect. The defendant reportedly admitted guilt and would appeal within the statutory appeal period, he said, adding that the defendant and his family have
RSS