TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Kaohsiung court on Thursday (Sept. 21) rejected an appeal attempt by a former colonel in Taiwan’s Army who posed for an in-uniform photo with a letter pledging commitment to peaceful reunification with China.
The seven-and-a-half-year jail sentence handed down to former army colonel Hsiang Te-en (???) was upheld on Thursday, per CNA. The presiding judge said that Hsiang had no grounds for an appeal and that he had changed his story and denied the crime during the appeal process.
In 2018, retired Taiwan military officer Shao Wei-chiang (???) met Hsiang, after which he persuaded the former colonel not to retire and spy for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The following year Hsiang signed a letter pledging his surrender to the CCP without resistance in the event of a cross-strait conflict.
The declaration reportedly stated, “I, Hsiang Te-en, hereby swear that I support the peaceful reunification of both sides of the Taiwan Strait. I will try my best to serve the motherland and the organization in my future work, and complete the sacred and glorious mission of peaceful reunification at an early date.”
Hsiang posed for a photo with the pledge wearing his military uniform, and he reportedly asked that the photo be sent to the nearby Chinese city of Xiamen. Hsiang used the photo to support his request for a payoff, which came by way of monthly NT$40,000 (US$1,240) payments.
During Hsiang’s initial sentencing, he returned NT$560,000 in proceeds from the crime. He was arrested in September 2022.
