Taiwan probes crime links to China's transnational repression — SkimNews
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- Taiwan National Security Bureau is probing organized crime networks it says are involved in Chinese 'transnational repression', particularly after an attack on a comedian who mocked President Xi Jinping.
- Tsai Ming-yen stated that criminal gangs and private investigation firms linked to organized crime are the primary local actors enabling these operations, raising concerns about CCP direction and funding.
- China has not responded to requests for comment on the comedian attack or broader allegations of supporting transnational repression through proxy actors in Taiwan.
- Denise Ho was attacked in 2019 in Taipei by a masked man who threw red paint, part of a pattern of assaults on China critics that Taiwan now links to cross-strait repression efforts.
- Tsai Ming-yen warned that Chinese Coast Guard and militia boats are increasingly active around Taiwan’s east and southwest, a shift he finds strategically significant given their usual presence in the South China Sea.
- U.S. State Department called Chinese activities off Taiwan’s east coast 'deeply destabilising' after the first known sighting of a Chinese militia boat in those waters.
Why it matters: Taiwan is treating organized crime as a national security threat with direct ties to China, shifting law enforcement focus toward dismantling networks that enable political repression. This reframing could lead to new legal measures and heighten U.S.-China tensions over maritime and covert operations near Taiwan.
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