Taiwan detains journalist for allegedly bribing military officers to provide information to China

A Taiwan national flag flutters near the Taipei 101 building at the National Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall in Taipei, Taiwan, May 7, 2023.

TAIPEI, Taiwan — A journalist in Taiwan was detained on allegations of bribing army officers to provide military information to people from mainland China, as the self-ruled island cracks down on potential infiltration from Beijing.

Taiwan’s Qiaotou District Prosecutors Office said in a statement that a district court ordered the detention of a television reporter and five current and retired military officers. Saturday’s statement didn’t identify the journalist, only using the surname Lin.

Meanwhile, CTi TV separately said one of its reporters, Lin Chen-you, has been detained and that it wasn’t aware of the case details, urging a fair judicial process.

Prosecutors accuse Lin of paying amounts ranging from several thousand to tens of thousands of Taiwan dollars (tens to hundreds of U.S. dollars) to current military officers in exchange for their providing information to “Chinese individuals.” The office didn’t specify who the Chinese people were or whether they were linked to the Chinese government.

Authorities raided the premises of the reporter and nine current and retired military personnel on Friday as part of an investigation into violations of Taiwan’s national security and corruption laws and disclosure of confidential information. CTi said that its offices were not raided.

According to Lin’s Facebook page, he is a political reporter and anchor covering the island’s legislature.

While Taiwan regularly pursues espionage cases within the government and military, allegations against journalists are unusual.

CTi News has been an online news outlet since Taiwan’s National Communications Commission refused to renew its cable television license in 2020, citing repeated violations and increasing complaints. A court later overturned the commission’s decision, but the legal row is still ongoing following appeals.

Beijing, which claims Taiwan as its own territory and threatens to take control of the island by force if necessary, has been increasing military pressure against the island. Last month, China’s military launched large-scale drills around it for two days after a Washington announcement of large-scale arms sales to Taiwan.

China and Taiwan have been governed separately since 1949, when the Communist Party rose to power in Beijing following a civil war. Defeated Nationalist Party forces fled to Taiwan, which later transitioned from martial law to multiparty democracy.

Taijing Wu and Kanis Leung, The Associated Press

Leung reported from Hong Kong.