3 sentenced for holding political events in Taiwan with Chinese funds

Taipei, June 30 (CNA) Three people have been sentenced to jail terms of up to two years for receiving over US$8,000 from Beijing to hold political campaigns and promote pro-China united front activities in Taiwan in contravention of the Anti-Infiltration Act.

The Taipei District Court on Monday found Gong He Party Chairman Chou Ke-chi (周克琦) guilty of the Anti-Infiltration Act violations and sentenced him to two years in jail.

Chu Chun-yuan (朱俊源) and Pan Jindong (潘進東), board members of the Taipei Puxian (also known as Putian) Association that prosecutors said was connected to the Gong He Party, received sentences of one year and 18 months in prison, respectively.

The decision is subject to appeal.

Pan, originally a Chinese national, moved to Taiwan in 2002 and later obtained a Taiwan national identification (ID) card, according to the indictment by the Taipei District Prosecutors Office.

He served as an executive director of the 21st Taipei Puxian Association and in 2021, was appointed deputy director of a Mazu cultural ceramic art museum in Putian City in China's Fujian Province, the indictment said.

Stationed in Taiwan and responsible for cross-strait cultural exchanges, he was instructed by officials from the Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) of Putian -- specifically, a section chief surnamed Chen (陳) and deputy director surnamed Xue (薛) -- to promote Chinese Communist Party (CCP) "united front" activities in Taiwan with Chu.

Prosecutors said Chou and Chu, as the party chairman and a director of the association, have long been involved in cross-strait exchanges related to Mazu as well as labor and cultural affairs and also had close ties with the TAO in Putian.

In Taiwan's 2022 local elections, Chou and Chu ran for Taipei mayor and city council seats under the Gong He Party banner, holding pro-China and pro-unification stances, and openly supporting the CCP, according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors said an investigation found that the three received NT$45,000 (US$1,540) in funding from China for their party's campaign activities in 2022.

That same year, while the World Movement for Democracy was being held in Taipei from Oct. 25 to Oct. 27, Pan and Chou planned a protest outside the venue.

They submitted their proposal to Xue, who approved a 50,000 Chinese yuan (US$6,971) budget for the protest.

As such, the trio were suspected of being individuals dispatched by organizations or agencies affiliated with a foreign hostile government for helping promote China's united front efforts in Taiwan, according to the indictment.

It was found that Chou, Pan and Chu recorded footage of the protest and campaign events, and sent it via WeChat to an unidentified Chinese individual to report their united front activities.

The individual then transferred 50,000 Chinese yuan to a dummy account designated by them, according to prosecutors. Of that amount, Chou received NT$45,000 and Pan received NT$175,000.

The three were indicted in August 2023.