The Taiwan Taoyuan District Prosecutors’ Office recently concluded an investigation into illegal individuals attempting to deceive the public into traveling to mainland China for organ harvesting. According to the latest statistics from the Ministry of Justice, over the past five years, the district prosecutors’ offices have concluded investigations involving 3,401 individuals in cases of human trafficking, with labor exploitation being the most common, and a total of 147 cases related to organ harvesting.
The Taoyuan District Prosecutors’ Office in Taiwan investigated a human trafficking case, uncovering Jiang and 7 others who used high salaries to recruit drivers and smuggling as bait to deceive people into going to mainland China to harvest organs. Three people fell victim to the scheme but fortunately were not transported out of the country. In September, the 7 defendants were charged and sentenced to 7 years in prison.
According to the statistical analysis released by the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of China in September, to strengthen the fight against criminal groups exploiting, enslaving, and using victims for crime in new forms of human trafficking, the “Human Trafficking Prevention Act” was amended and promulgated on June 14, 2023, to expand the scope of punishment and increase the severity of criminal responsibilities to enhance human rights protection and sternly punish illegal activities.
Analyzing the cases of human trafficking handled by local prosecutors’ offices from 2021 to 2025, a total of 3,401 individuals have been investigated. The numbers fluctuated each year, with over 600 individuals since 2022, reaching the highest in the past five years at 957 in 2023 and 802 in 2025.
Looking at the types of cases, among the 3,401 individuals involved, labor exploitation accounted for the highest number at 1,914, followed by sexual exploitation at 1,281. Observing the annual trends, the number of sexual exploitation cases has been increasing, from 168 in 2021 to 309 in 2025, while labor exploitation showed an initial increase followed by a decrease, peaking at 678 in 2023 and dropping to 397 in 2025. There were a total of 147 cases of organ harvesting, with each year having fewer than 70 cases, and in 2025, there were 34 cases.
Further statistical analysis revealed that out of the 3,401 individuals, 41.0% were prosecuted. In terms of the age of those convicted in human trafficking cases in the past five years, the majority, at 50.4%, were aged “18 or above but under 30,” followed by 27.3% aged “30 or above but under 40,” with an average age of 32.0 years.
The Ministry of Justice stated that human trafficking is a heinous and severely harmful crime recognized by the international community, and the government has actively taken various preventive measures, tracking and reviewing prevention strategies across ministries, integrating public and private resources, and strengthening the fight against human trafficking. According to the 2025 Global Trafficking in Persons Report by the U.S. Department of State, Taiwan has been ranked as a Tier 1 country for 16 consecutive years, receiving international recognition for its effectiveness.
(Translated from Central News Agency)