TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Following Chinese allegations against Interior Minister Liu Shyh-fang (劉世芳), the Mainland Affairs Council issued a warning Saturday to Taiwanese conducting business and working in China to evaluate the risks.
Beijing ordered an investigation into a nephew of the minister after a Hong Kong newspaper alleged he gave political donations to Liu despite holding executive positions in lithium-ion battery producers in China. The Mainland Affairs Council accused China of misrepresenting the facts about the issue, per CNA.
On Saturday, the council also issued its first warning of the year reminding business people and investors about the potential risks of working in China. As there was no separation between business and politics in China, Taiwanese needed to carefully evaluate the risks of economic losses and of dangers to personal safety.
Economic problems included a slowdown, structural transformation problems, youth unemployment, declining foreign investment, weak consumer spending, and deflation, the council said. Other countries, including the US, Japan, and European nations were reducing their engagement with the Chinese economy. The 5% economic growth rate Beijing named for 2025 faced doubts from international and professional economists.
China’s actions against what it called “Taiwan independence die-hards” posed an unpredictable threat against the assets and the personal safety of innocent Taiwanese business people, the council said. The distortions of the truth and the threats against business people revealed how an authoritarian government could misuse public power, according to the council.
Considering the rising threats posed by the communist government, business people from Taiwan needed to give careful thought to whether they wanted to continue and do business in China, the council said. The government department also urged China to stop using politics to interfere in pure economic and trade dealings. Beijing’s behavior will only force Taiwanese businesses to break their links with China and cause cross-strait relations to deteriorate further, the council said.
