Multiple counties and cities in Taiwan have seen incidents of livestreamers from mainland China filming children around elementary schools, with Taipei police uncovering the first case, leading to the prosecution of a woman with ties to the mainland. Experts are calling on the government not to overlook the national security risks behind these livestreaming incidents involving individuals from mainland China, urging an investigation to prevent similar events from happening again.
In various parts of Taiwan, mainland Chinese livestreamers have been broadcasting live near schools, sparking concerns in society. Taipei City councilor Hsu Shu-hua revealed on Facebook that she recently exposed a Chinese livestreamer filming children’s faces without parental consent near school entrances, capturing clear images of the children, potentially jeopardizing their personal safety.
Hsu Shu-hua pointed out that she subsequently compiled relevant evidence and handed it over to the police for investigation. The case has now been transferred to the Taipei District Prosecutor’s Office for investigation based on charges of infringing upon privacy laws and violating Article 69 of the Child and Youth Welfare and Rights Protection Act, marking the first case of its kind being lawfully investigated in Taiwan. She emphasized that Taiwan’s laws regarding children and youth not only apply to media and government agencies, but also dictate that anyone must not disclose personal information identifying children or minors without consent from their guardian.
Expressing her concerns, Hsu Shu-hua highlighted that these incidents involving Chinese livestreamers filming children may have “hidden hands” directing and orchestrating them. A whistleblower informed her that a livestreamer was surreptitiously filming in crowded areas despite multiple warnings from bystanders. The livestreamer first asked if the other party was a police officer, and then text on their phone screen allegedly appeared with phrases like “don’t respond to him,” arousing suspicions of ulterior motives.
Legal commentator Chen Yi-shen told Dajiyuan that there has been a recent surge in mainland Chinese spouses capturing footage of elementary school students arriving and leaving school across various regions in Taiwan, including Keelung, Taipei, Hsinchu, Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, and the outlying island of Kinmen. Witnesses reported that these capturing pairs typically operate in twos, with one filming and the other acting as a lookout. Should a student’s parent discover and question their activities, these individuals rebuke and prohibit any attempts to film them back.
Chen Yi-shen stated that these incidents of Chinese spouses livestreaming footage of elementary school students simultaneously occurring across Taiwan indicate organized actions. Apart from potential criminal offenses under the Child and Youth Welfare and Rights Protection Act, the Criminal Code, and Personal Information Protection Act, there may also be implications for national security. Therefore, Taiwan’s national security units should proactively intervene and investigate.
Hsu Shu-hua believed that since the covert filming by Chinese livestreamers is not isolated, it appears to be a comprehensive and planned operation. She urgently called for the involvement of national security units and Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council in conducting an investigation to understand the underlying reasons behind these events. What are the true motives behind filming Taiwanese children without their knowledge? Could this signify a new form of united front tactics? Is there a risk of exploiting children’s personal information to jeopardize the safety of future generations?
Taipei City police confirmed that Taipei City councilor Hsu Shu-hua reported a case involving a Chinese livestreamer filming students near a particular elementary school. Following the investigation, the implicated woman surnamed Liu was summoned for questioning and subsequently reported to the competent authority at Taipei City Government for disciplinary action, and the case was referred to the Taipei District Prosecutor’s Office for further investigation.
Taiwan Legislator Chen Pei-yu stated on Facebook that disputes have arisen regarding Chinese livestreamers filming outside elementary schools in Taipei, New Taipei, Kaohsiung, and Taoyuan. Although no direct harm has been caused yet, questions arise on how the children’s images will be used and the motives of the filmmakers. Consequently, she interrogated the Director-General of the Police Administration during a Judiciary Committee session. The director responded by urging the public to immediately report any illegal collection or filming of children’s images by calling 110 or local police stations, as law enforcement will intervene.
Chen Pei-yu emphasized, “Facing the increasing livestreaming of Taiwan elementary school students commuting live on Chinese streaming websites, I remind the Police Administration that we cannot just look at individual cases but need to engage in cross-sectional discussions with police and educational entities to protect our children’s images from being controlled or exploited by foreign platforms.”
In the livestream videos by Chinese spouses, terms such as “Taiwan Province elementary school students” and “Motherland” appear, which are united front rhetoric. Regarding this, Chen Yi-shen mentioned that upon reviewing the contents of these livestreams by Chinese spouses, they may seem like propaganda clips on the surface, but such livestream behaviors carry underlying concerns:
1. Instigating fears among parents that their children might be at risk of abduction: Numerous witnesses have observed these livestreaming Chinese spouses not only filming children near school entrances but also covertly following students until they reach after-school care centers or even trailing a solitary student all the way to their residence.
These livestream videos meticulously expose school schedules, routines, and the locations of after-school care centers, which if integrated and analyzed systematically, could easily be exploited unlawfully. Coupled with reports of kidnapping, child trafficking, and organ trafficking by the Communist regime, as they seek to annex Taiwan, the possibility of Taiwanese children becoming the next targets cannot be discounted, plunging parents into anxiety over their children’s potential threats to personal safety and disrupting social stability in Taiwan.
2. Gathering intelligence on the architectural layouts of Taiwanese schools through livestreaming: Several individuals have been questioned by livestreaming spouses about the specific buildings within school premises, such as, “Which building is the administrative office?” These seemingly innocuous inquiries regarding Taiwan schools’ structures and customs may have covert implications in terms of national security.
Historically, during World War II, when cities were subjected to enemy airstrikes, civilians typically sought refuge in schools or nearby bomb shelters, with the administrative office within schools possibly serving as a command center for small units. In the event of an enemy missile attack, this could potentially incapacitate the functioning of these emergency shelter units. Although international law explicitly prohibits bombing schools and hospitals, given the Communist Party’s disregard for international norms, precautions remain necessary.
3. Recent findings by Japanese media revealed that the Chinese military constructed a town in the Inner Mongolian desert strikingly similar to the location of the Taipei Presidential Office’s “Taipei Bo’ai Special District,” with a mere two-meter discrepancy, speculating that the Communist Party might be training the army to carry out assassination operations against Taiwanese leaders. By filming schools across Taiwan, these videos can form a detailed map of school distributions, making it easier for the Chinese military to grasp Taiwan’s topography.
Chen Yi-shen emphasized that given the Communist Party’s active preparations to invade Taiwan, the coordinated and mission-oriented livestreaming by these Chinese spouses documenting elementary schools and students underscores a concealed national security crisis that Taiwan’s government must not overlook, urging a comprehensive probe into the underlying organizations to prevent the recurrence of similar events.