Taiwanese professor accused of spying in China returns home

Shi Zhengping, a retired associate professor from National Taiwan Normal University, who was accused of being a Taiwanese spy by China, has reportedly returned to Taiwan. Shi was sentenced to four years in prison and had been serving an additional two-year period of political rights deprivation.

According to reports, Shi completed his prison sentence in 2024 and then served the additional penalty, which restricts political rights, before being allowed to return to Taiwan. Under Chinese law, the deprivation of political rights is an additional sentence for offenders convicted of endangering national security, life imprisonment, or death penalty cases. The sentence begins after the main prison term is served.

Shi Zhengping disappeared in China in 2018. In 2020, during China's National Day celebrations, Shi appeared on Chinese state television, confessing to spying activities alongside three other individuals: Li Mengju, Tsai Chin-shu, and Cheng Yu-chin. Chinese state media has accused these individuals of spying for Taiwan.

Of the four individuals accused, both Li Mengju and Shi Zhengping have since returned to Taiwan. Tsai Chin-shu was released in May 2023 but remains in mainland China under resettlement in Xiamen due to a four-year deprivation of political rights. Cheng Yu-chin is reportedly still imprisoned after receiving a seven-year sentence.

Shi, known for his pro-blue political stance, previously served as a representative for agricultural trade in the United States during the Chen Shui-bian administration and maintained good relations with American contacts. Before his disappearance in China, he held the position of chief economist for a Chinese state-owned enterprise, China Xiahua Group, and had strong connections with the Chinese Communist Party, navigating relationships between the U.S., China, and Taiwan.