National Taiwan University (NTU) professor of chemical engineering Lee Duu-jong (李篤中) has been fined NT$300,000 (US$10,589) for accepting nearly NT$10 million in unauthorized funding from China, the Ministry of Education said yesterday, following months of investigation.
From 2009, Lee, now an NTU lifetime distinguished professor, received three research grants from China’s National Natural Science Foundation via the Harbin Institute of Technology, the ministry said in a statement.
Taking research grants from Chinese government-backed entities without authorization is a breach of the Act Governing Relations between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例), it said.
Public school educators may not teach in China and must obtain regulatory approval to participate in China’s Key Technologies Research and Development Program or receive grants from Beijing-controlled foundations, the ministry said.
In September last year, an expose by the Chinese-language Mirror Media alleged that Lee received illegal funding from Beijing’s Thousand Talents and Changjiang Scholars programs, in addition to four grants from several universities in China.
Within the day of the Mirror Media report, a complaint filed against Lee triggered an investigation by the ministry, while Lee dropped out of the race to be president of National Taiwan University of Science and Technology.
The ministry at the time said that the allegations against Lee were “serious,” as they involved contravening regulations on taking part in academic employment in China, in addition to receiving unauthorized part-time income.
The Thousand Talents program has been a source of controversy in Taiwan, as Beijing funding Taiwanese academics is seen in the nation as a potential threat to national security.
Additional reporting by CNA
CAUTION: Based on intelligence from the nation’s security agencies, MOFA has cautioned Taiwanese travelers about heightened safety risks in China-friendly countries The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday urged Taiwanese to be aware of their safety when traveling abroad, especially in countries that are friendly to China. China in June last year issued 22 guidelines that allow its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death so-called “diehard” Taiwanese independence activists, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction in Taiwan. Late last month, a senior Chinese official gave closed-door instructions to state security units to implement the guidelines in countries friendly to China, a government memo and a senior Taiwan security official said, based on information gathered by Taiwan’s intelligence agency. The
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC), the world’s largest contract chipmaker, said yesterday that it is looking to hire 8,000 people this year, at a time when the tech giant is expanding production capacity to maintain its lead over competitors. To attract talent, TSMC would launch a large-scale recruitment campaign on campuses across Taiwan, where a newly recruited engineer with a master’s degree could expect to receive an average salary of NT$2.2 million (US$60,912), which is much higher than the 2023 national average of NT$709,000 for those in the same category, according to government statistics. TSMC, which accounted for more than 60 percent
Tung Tzu-hsien (童子賢), a Taiwanese businessman and deputy convener of the nation’s National Climate Change Committee, said yesterday that “electrical power is national power” and nuclear energy is “very important to Taiwan.” Tung made the remarks, suggesting that his views do not align with the country’s current official policy of phasing out nuclear energy, at a forum organized by the Taiwan People’s Party titled “Challenges and Prospects of Taiwan’s AI Industry and Energy Policy.” “Taiwan is currently pursuing industries with high added- value and is developing vigorously, and this all requires electricity,” said the chairman
RSS