The Mainland Affairs Council of the Republic of China recently revealed that two Taiwanese nationals with police identities were taken away by Chinese state security personnel for interrogation while traveling in mainland China, a move questioned for its authenticity by the China Times. The Mainland Affairs Council emphasized that there is clear evidence in both cases and criticized the related statements as aiding the Chinese Communist Party in cognitive warfare.
According to a report by the Taiwan-based China Times, grassroots police officers have questioned the authenticity of the cases disclosed by the Mainland Affairs Council involving current and retired Taiwanese police officers detained and investigated in China. They believe that the two individuals may have been detained by the Chinese authorities due to “unusual behavior.”
Responding to the China Times’ report questioning the authenticity of the cases revealed by the Mainland Affairs Council on the 16th, the council stated that the two police officers detained by China’s authorities were a current squad leader of the Traffic Division and a retired police officer of the Guard Division. On the morning of June 24, after checking into a guesthouse in Quanzhou, China, they were immediately taken to a third location for isolation and interrogation by 6 to 7 Chinese state security personnel. The interrogation lasted until 5:10 p.m. that day, lasting for a total of 6 hours.
The Mainland Affairs Council pointed out that the media’s use of “grassroots police officers” as a general term, along with baseless speculation like “the two individuals may have engaged in abnormal behavior in the hotel leading to the interrogation,” is a typical tactic of smearing whistleblowers and shifting focus.
The Council emphasized that Taiwanese judicial police officers being detained and interrogated by China’s intelligence system after traveling to China is not an isolated case. In recent years, colleagues from agencies such as the Investigation Bureau, National Police Agency, Immigration Agency, and Coast Guard Administration who hold judicial police status and are responsible for maritime security, border control, social order, and special security maintenance have experienced specific cases of being detained and interrogated after personally encountering such incidents, prompting them to raise warnings to the government.
Furthermore, the Mainland Affairs Council stated that questioning cases with statements like “it’s a rumor if it hasn’t happened to oneself” or “the individuals must have engaged in illegal activities to be targeted” lacks factual basis and aligns with the narratives of the Taiwan Affairs Office of the Chinese Communist Party, which claim that “as long as one does not engage in illegal activities, they will be safe” and that “the Taiwan government is maliciously exaggerating and intimidating the public.”
The council emphasized that such remarks are actually aiding the Chinese Communist Party in cognitive warfare by confusing public perception and whitewashing their actions. They urged the public to recognize the personal safety risks faced by Taiwanese public officials traveling to China and advised against baseless accusations or doubts towards those issuing warnings.