By Wu Qiaoxi | 2025-03-21

Taiwanese authorities are considering raising travel alerts for certain countries following reports that Beijing has ordered its national security agency to crack down on "Taiwan independence elements" abroad.

Wang Huning, a member of the Chinese Communist Party's elite Politburo Standing Committee and one of President Xi Jinping's closest advisers, gave the order during a two-day meeting on Taiwan that began February 25, Reuters reported, citing a Taiwanese government memo.

In the meeting, Wang asked Beijing's embassies and overseas police stations in countries enjoying "a high degree of trust" with China to implement guidelines approved last year targeting Taiwanese tourists, students and residents, the memo said.

Last June, China issued guidelines to punish "diehard" Taiwan independence activists, including with prison time and the death penalty.

On March 8, China's Supreme People's Court and Supreme People's Procuratorate reaffirmed enforcement of these measures, even though Chinese courts have no jurisdiction over the island and its citizens.

An unidentified senior Taiwanese official told Reuters that the new directive means Taiwanese citizens in countries like Cambodia, Laos and parts of Africa may face detention or investigation if suspected of supporting Taiwanese independence.

"They might be taken for questioning by the local or Chinese police there, at least to psychologically intimidate them," the official said.

Taiwanese security agencies have been considering whether to raise the alert level for travel to certain countries for its citizens, the official added.

Neither China's Taiwan Affairs Office nor Foreign Ministry immediately responded to these claims.

"China is attempting to 'restrict' Taiwan's democracy and freedom through these guidelines," said Taiwan's Foreign Ministry.

The ministry said it has instructed its overseas offices to monitor and assess relevant risks and to remind the public to pay attention to safety when traveling abroad.

Independence crackdown

China has established more than 100 so-called overseas police stations around the globe to monitor, harass and in some cases repatriate Chinese citizens living in exile, according to Western reports.

It has previously denied maintaining the stations but has said there are volunteer-run centers that help Chinese citizens renew documents and provide other services.

China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and long has threatened to use force to seize it, citing its Anti-Secession Law as justification. However, the law's definition of Taiwan independence remains vague.

The guidelines introduced last year expanded the definition to include advocating for Taiwan's participation in international organizations or promoting the idea that Taiwan is separate from China.

China's Taiwan Affairs Office and Ministry of Public Security have created a hotline for reporting pro-Taiwan-independence activities. Both agencies' websites now have a page identifying such activists and containing news articles about them.

At least 52 Taiwanese residents have disappeared or been detained after traveling to China since 2024, says Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council.

Notable cases include social activist Yang Chih-yuan, who traveled to Xiamen and then Wenzhou to attend the Wenzhou Go tournament in 2022.

In September, Yang was sentenced to nine years in prison for "the offense of secession."

Another case involves Fucha Yanhe, the editor-in-chief of Gusa Publishing, who disappeared in March 2023 after traveling to Shanghai to cancel his household registration and has been detained ever since.

Both individuals were identified by Chinese authorities as being involved in "major security incidents."