Taiwan: China's infiltration tactics evolve to bypass anti-spy law

Chinese Communist Party infiltration in Taiwan has not ceased and continues to evolve, according to Chang Yu-meng, a director at the Taiwan Youth Democratic Association. Despite Taiwan's 2020 Anti-Infiltration Act, the practice of offering "low-cost but luxurious" hospitality to Taiwanese local leaders and organizations has persisted. Chang asserts that the CCP has developed a standard operating procedure (SOP) specifically designed to circumvent this law.

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infiltration has never stopped, and the methods are constantly evolving

Chang emphasized that infiltration is a constant, evolving threat, and criticized the notion that appeasement could lead to peace, stating, "I can only say, it's either foolish or naive." He cited three cases illustrating the CCP's tactics. Before the 2016 election, 133 village chiefs from Taipei visited Shanghai, with about a third of the city's chiefs reportedly accepting hospitality and posing for photos holding a banner that read, "The unification of China is a responsibility."

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I can only say, it's either foolish or naive.

Another instance involved a village chief from New Taipei City who accepted hospitality arranged by the Nanjing Taiwan Affairs Office before the 2020 election. During the event, officials allegedly urged attendees to support candidates aligned with the "1992 Consensus" and explicitly stated they wanted the Kuomintang to win. More recently, during the latest presidential and legislative elections, Taipei city councilors revealed that village chiefs were privately organizing trips to China for residents. Promotional materials mentioned visits arranged by the National People's Congress Standing Committee and hosted by generals, with many of the village chiefs involved belonging to the blue camp and targeting key figures capable of mobilizing grassroots support.

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The unification of China is a responsibility.

Chang explained that the CCP's evasion tactics include requiring village chiefs to pay travel fees upfront, creating a legitimate paper trail for remittances. Upon arrival in China, the Taiwan Affairs Office provides equivalent cash or gift certificates under various pretexts, effectively making the trips free for residents while obscuring the financial flow. Furthermore, the CCP allegedly uses seemingly neutral associations, clan groups, or temples as intermediaries, layering financial transactions to make tracing the funding sources difficult for Taiwanese investigators. To avoid detection, participants reportedly scatter their airplane seats and only gather after landing, reducing the risk of being intercepted by authorities.

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to help the Kuomintang win.