Asia-Pacific
Taiwan: head of the People’s Communist Party detained over money from Beijing – the voter trips to China
Prosecutors say Lin Te-wang ran in local elections with instructions and money from Beijing. A Tainan court ordered him held incommunicado. Local elections are on November 28.
The founder and chairman of Taiwan’s small People’s Communist Party, Lin Te-wang, is being held in pretrial detention, with communication banned. Prosecutors accuse him of running in local elections on instructions and money from Beijing. The Tainan court granted the detention request, the Tainan District Prosecutors Office announced on Sunday, November 8.
Mr Lin, who founded the party in 2017, was a candidate for head of Tainan Village (台南里) in the city’s Singying district. The prosecution alleges the “source of infiltration” was an official of the Taiwan Affairs Office of a Chinese city government, which it does not name. From there, according to the charge, Mr Lin received orders and funding, and then himself gave instructions and money to Central Committee member Chen Chen-chou to run for Wuling village in North District, Hsinchu. The investigation also covers vote buying: in the first half of 2026 they allegedly organised several trips by eligible voters to China, with all expenses covered by the hosts. The local elections are on November 28.
A joint investigation with Hsinchu
The case began when the prosecutors’ offices in Tainan and Hsinchu each received information, separately, from the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau that foreign forces were trying to influence the ballot. They formed a joint team and on Friday, November 6 carried out simultaneous house searches at five locations in Tainan and three in Hsinchu. In Tainan 13 suspects were summoned; in Hsinchu one suspect and nine witnesses.
Mr Lin is charged under the Anti-Infiltration Act: taking part in elections on orders and money from an infiltration source, and passing orders and money to a third party. Mr Chen additionally faces vote buying under the election law. The prosecution asked for both to be detained, citing flight risk and risk of collusion to destroy evidence. The Hsinchu court, however, released Mr Chen on bail of 50,000 new Taiwan dollars (about 1,500 US dollars) and restricted him to his registered residence. The state news agency CNA notes that Hsinchu prosecutors are expected to appeal. The other suspects and witnesses were released while the investigation continues.
The Tainan prosecutors said they will keep pursuing vote buying, violence, illegal gambling, disinformation, fictitious household registrations and foreign interference in elections.
The case comes as Beijing also applies military pressure around the island, with the daily sorties of Chinese aircraft and warships recorded by Taipei’s defence ministry, such as 11 aircraft and 10 ships on November 7. In Washington, the 14 billion dollar arms package for Taiwan is still awaiting White House approval.
