Two retired military officers were indicted yesterday for allegedly helping China develop an espionage network in Taiwan.
Chien Ching-kuo (錢經國), who retired from the navy in 2009, and Lu Chun-chun (盧俊均), who served at the Missile Command Center until 2005, were charged with violating the National Security Act (國家安全法) and Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例).
The Kaohsiung District Prosecutors’ Office said in the indictment that after retiring, Lu began a business career in China, where he reportedly made friends with government officials in Xiamen before being recruited by Chinese intelligence.
In May 2009, Lu invited Chien on an all-expenses-paid trip to Bali, Indonesia, where Chien met with Chinese intelligence personnel, the indictment said.
Chinese intelligence allegedly asked Chien about the situation in Taiwan’s military and paid 1,000 Chinese yuan to 2,000 Chinese yuan (US$164 to US$328 at current exchange rates).
Following their return home, Lu and Chien invited Chang Chih-hsin (張祉鑫), then-chief officer of political warfare at the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Office, and his wife on a trip to Cebu, Philippines, the indictment said, adding that Chang later agreed to help active-duty officers gather intelligence for China and arrange for overseas trips for them.
He is suspected of having received US$2,000 as a reward during the Cebu trip.
Chang retired last year and he is facing espionage charges in a case before the Taiwan High Court’s Kaohsiung Branch.
Chien is also accused of inviting a Ministry of National Defense division head, identified only by his surname Hsu (徐), to dine at a Taipei restaurant in September 2011 and trying to convince him to spy for China.
Hsu, a one-star general, rejected the offer, but his wife and her sister later accepted a trip to Xiamen from Chien, the indictment said. The Kaohsiung High Prosecutors’ Office is looking into that case.
Honor guards are to stop performing changing of the guard ceremonies around a statue of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) to avoid “worshiping authoritarianism,” the Ministry of Culture said yesterday. The fate of the bronze statue has long been the subject of fierce and polarizing debate in Taiwan, which has transformed from an autocracy under Chiang into one of Asia’s most vibrant democracies. The changing of the guard each hour at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei is a major tourist attraction, but starting from 9am on Monday, the ceremony is to be moved outdoors to Democracy Boulevard, outside the eponymous blue-and-white memorial
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) supports peaceful unification with China, and President William Lai (賴清德) is “a bit naive” for being a “practical worker for Taiwanese independence,” former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) said in an interview published yesterday. Asked about whether the KMT is on the same page as the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) on the issue of Taiwanese independence or unification with China, Ma told the Malaysian Chinese-language newspaper Sin Chew Daily that they are not. While the KMT supports peaceful unification and is against unification by force, the DPP opposes unification as such and
The government would cancel kendo practitioner Su Yu-cheng’s (蘇郁程) nationality if he is confirmed to have represented China in the World Kendo Championships in Milan, Italy, last week, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday. “We have consulted the Sports Administration and were told that athletes participating in the championships must have the nationality of the country that they represent. They must also present their passports as proof,” council spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a weekly news conference. “If Su indeed represented China in the championships, we suspect that he has obtained Chinese nationality.” The Act Governing Relations Between the People of the
FATAL ILLNESS: Untreated symptoms can rapidly worsen to complications such as high fever, seizures and loss of consciousness, and can be life-threatening, a doctor said Hospitals have been reporting dozens of people with heat-related illnesses every day over the past week, given continuous high daytime temperatures, so recognizing the early signs of heatstroke is crucial in preventing serious complications, a Taipei City Hospital emergency physician said. The Central Weather Administration yesterday issued a heat alert for 19 cities and counties across Taiwan, with temperatures in New Taipei City, Miaoli County and Pingtung County likely to exceed 38°C, and temperatures in 12 cities and counties likely to exceed 36°C for three days straight. More than a dozen people were taken to hospitals for heat-related illnesses every day from