Taiwan targets Beijing-linked infiltration with push for stricter punishment
Lawmakers propose minimum sentences and tighter rules for political candidates, while critics warn the changes amount to more social control
The proposed changes to the Anti-Infiltration Act, under review by the legislature’s Interior Affairs Committee on Monday, come six years after the law took effect.
They also come amid growing concerns within the government that prosecutions have resulted in disproportionately light sentences despite the heavy investigative burden involved in security cases.
According to official statistics, prosecutors have indicted 127 people under the law since it was enacted in 2020.
Only five have received final guilty verdicts. Average sentences have ranged from three to six months – outcomes that blunt the law’s deterrent effect, according to DPP lawmakers.
Lawmaker Wang Ting-yu, one of 20 sponsors of the amendment, said investigations into infiltration cases were typically cross-border and covert. As a result, they require far more manpower and resources than ordinary criminal cases.