Four former employees of Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) were recently convicted of spying for China and sentenced to up to 10 years in prison. Those convicted include a former aide to Taiwan’s president, Lai Ching-te, and a senior staffer to Joseph Wu, who was then the foreign minister and is now the national security chief.
The court found that Huang Chu-jung, a former assistant to a New Taipei city councillor, had the longest sentence of 10 years, and was also guilty of money laundering. He was fined 1 million New Taiwan dollars (approximately £25,000) and is facing separate charges of developing a criminal organization for China.
According to prosecutors, Huang had sent information to Chinese intelligence agents through encrypted software and had instructed Chiu Shih-yuan, the former deputy head of the DPP’s Taiwan Institute of Democracy, to gather more information from Joseph Wu. Chiu was sentenced to 6 years and 2 months in prison. Huang and Chiu had conflicting stances, with Huang denying any wrongdoing while Chiu pleaded guilty.
The prosecution had initially sought longer sentences for the four men, and is considering an appeal. Taiwan, which is self-governed and claimed by Beijing, has been vigilante against Chinese espionage. President Lai has adopted a more aggressive approach toward people with pro-China sympathies. Recent measures include labeling China as a “foreign hostile force” and strengthening national security measures, such as restoring a military court system.
In addition, Taiwan has recently cracked down on people found to be holding Chinese identification documents or passports unlawfully. Lai argues that these measures are necessary to combat the infiltration of Taiwan’s military, government, and society, referred to as “grey zone” tactics.
Despite never being ruled by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to reunify it with China, even considering the use of force if necessary. However, some in China believe that cognitive warfare, espionage, and disinformation campaigns can help bring Taiwan under Chinese rule without military conflict.
The vast majority of the Taiwanese population opposes the idea of being ruled by the CCP.
(Additional research by Lillian Yang and Jason Tzu Kuan Lu)
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/25/taiwan-convicts-four-former-ruling-party-officials-of-spying-for-china
