00:00Taiwan currently has 75 active political parties.
00:05One of them is the Taiwan People's Communist Party, or TPCP, which has recently come under
00:11scrutiny from prosecutors.
00:13The party is aligned with the Chinese Communist Party's stance that Taiwan is part of China.
00:20Prosecutors allege that party chair Lin Teowang accepted money and instructions from the CCP
00:26in an attempt to sway Taiwan's elections.
00:29They also say that the TPCP's Vice Chair Zheng Jianxin became a conduit for China's attempts
00:35to influence elections when he ran for Taipei City Council in 2022.
00:41The money was allegedly used for political rallies and protests, which would violate anti-infiltration
00:47and election laws.
00:48Zheng denies the accusations.
00:50A district court has found both Lin and Zheng not guilty as the alleged Chinese-funded activities
01:07happened before Taiwan's election authorities officially posted Zheng as a registered candidate.
01:14Though the party's actions did not violate anti-infiltration laws.
01:19Prosecutors say they will appeal that verdict.
01:21This is just the latest in a series of cases where prosecutors and court judges are at odds
01:38over what constitutes a violation of the country's anti-infiltration laws, which some experts view
01:44as being too narrowly defined.
01:47At a time when Taiwan is under constant threat of Chinese infiltration, authorities here are
01:52cautious about Beijing's efforts to influence the country.
01:56For more information, visit www.taiwanplus.com.
Comments