TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) on Monday proposed amendments to the Anti-Infiltration Act that would set a minimum sentence of one year in prison for violations.
Speaking at a legislative committee meeting, Wang said infiltration activities pose serious risks to national security and that the absence of a minimum sentence lowers the cost for hostile forces to engage in such acts, per Liberty Times. DPP Legislator Puma Shen (沈伯洋) said the proposal is intended to strengthen penalties for individuals acting as intermediaries between the Chinese Communist Party and compromised Taiwanese politicians.
Shen also emphasized that the Anti-Infiltration Act does not create new crimes but adds penalties to offenses already covered under existing laws.
Commenting on the proposal, Mainland Affairs Council Spokesperson Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) said there have been cases in which punishments were, in his view, too lenient given the seriousness of the offenses, and he welcomed efforts to address gaps in the law.
The amendment also proposes extending coverage of the Anti-Infiltration Act to individuals intending to run for public office, in addition to registered candidates, per CNA. The Interior Ministry responded that because the law does not clearly define “people intending to run for public office,” the amendment would need to provide a clear definition.
The Justice Ministry cautioned that before individuals formally register as candidates, there is no objective standard for determining intent to seek public office.
During the meeting, Liang also addressed enforcement challenges under the Anti-Infiltration Act. He said that despite investigators’ efforts, it remains difficult to prove that intermediaries are directed by the CCP, per Tai Sounds.
Liang said the difficulty lies not in the law itself but in the evolving methods used by the CCP to circumvent Taiwanese regulations. He suggested that agencies handling Anti-Infiltration Act cases study how other countries address espionage, rather than relying solely on traditional criminal prosecution.
After the meeting, the KMT criticized a separate remark by Liang. Responding to questions about the low prosecution rate in Anti-Infiltration Act cases, Liang said that “sometimes when people are prosecuted, but the court rules them not guilty, that does not necessarily mean they are free of wrongdoing,” per ETtoday.
The KMT said the comment violated the principle of legality and the presumption of innocence, and warned that it suggested undue influence by the ruling DPP over the judicial system.
Liang rejected the criticism, saying his remarks were meant to highlight the difficulty of prosecuting infiltration cases. He added that low prosecution and conviction rates demonstrate that the DPP does not exert the influence over Taiwan’s legal system alleged by the opposition.
