Taiwanese Lawmaker facing Chinese Examination Addresses german Parliament Committee
Berlin, โฃGermany – taiwanese lawmaker Shen Yi-min, who isโ currently “wanted” by China,โ addressed a committee in the lower house of the German federal parliament on Wednesday. Hisโค address, beginning at 1:29:00 in the video recording of โthe hearing, โคfocused on theโข impact โof Chinese disinformation campaigns on both Europe and Taiwan, and also the role ofโ Russiaโ and Hungary in spreading disinformation across the continent.
Shen, a former associate professor at Nationalโฃ Taipei University specializing in white-collar crime, disinformation โฃcampaigns, and financial crime, told โฃreporters after the hearing he was invitedโ to speak in his capacity as aโ Taiwanese lawmaker โคand โan expert on combatingโ disinformation. He expressed satisfaction with Europe’s โgrowing awareness of disinformation and cognitive warfare, while noting his frustration that similar concerns aren’t universallyโ shared in Taiwan.
The investigation into shen stemsโข from allegations โฃof “secession-related” criminal activities, including his involvement with the civil defense organization Kuma academy.โฃ china’s state-run xinhua News Agency reported last month that the โฃChongqing Municipal Public Security Bureau is โขinvestigating shen under China’s criminal Law โand โnew โคjudicial guidelines introduced in 2024 โtargetingโข “Taiwan independence separatists.”
Following the Xinhua report, a โChinese โคlegal expertโ appearing on state-run CCTV on Sunday suggested Shen should be pursuedโ through Interpol and mutual judicial assistance โagreements. this prompted concerns โฃin โTaiwan regarding the possibilityโ of Shen’s arrest and extradition.
Shen respondedโฃ to the threats in โa video posted on Facebook Tuesday, filmed in front ofโค the Bundestag building. “For a very long time, China has been โคdeploying coercive actions to try to silence Taiwanese,”โ he stated. “But I am here in front of the Bundestag andโ will soon be speaking at โฃa hearing as a Taiwanese lawmaker.” He affirmed, “As โa brave Taiwanese, I willโค never draw back inโ fear. โI am here todayโข to safeguard not โฃonyl โคTaiwan’s democracy but alsoโฃ global democracy and freedom.”
Taiwan’s Foreign โMinister Lin Chia-lungโข reassured theโ public on Thursday that it wasโ safe for Shenโค to visit Germany, stating that โคall Taiwanese โlawmakers โขare protected by theโค foreign ministry โand itsโ overseasโ offices โฃduringโข international travel. Lin emphasized โthat extradition fromโค a democraticโข countryโ like Germany woudlโข require judicial cooperation, an extradition treaty, and a review of the request to ensureโ compliance with German law.
the Taiwan government believesโ China’s threatsโ against Shen are intended to create an illusion ofโ “long-arm jurisdiction” and to instill fear and division within โthe Taiwanese population, according to Lin.
(By Lin shang-yinโค andโ Josephโข Yeh)
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