A day after Taiwan promised to strengthen its defenses, Chinese authorities on Saturday offered $1,400 in rewards for information regarding 18 individuals they claimed were Taiwanese military psychological operations officers disseminating "separatist" ideas.
Despite the Taipei government's vehement protestations, China considers democratically ruled Taiwan to be its own territory and has stepped up its political and military pressure on the island.The 18 were identified as key members of the Taiwan military's "psychological warfare unit" by the public security bureau in the Chinese city of Xiamen, which is located across the Taiwan Strait from Taiwan.
Their names, photos, and Taiwan identity card numbers were also made public.
According to a statement from the security office, the unit is responsible for tasks like misinformation, intelligence collection, psychological warfare, and propaganda broadcasting.
"For a long time they plotted to incite separatist activities," the bureau stated, adding that information that resulted in their arrest might earn prizes of up to 10,000 yuan ($1,401.74).
According to a separate report by the state news agency Xinhua, they operated illegal radios for "infiltration," produced fake video content to mislead people, launched websites for smear campaigns, made seditious games to incite secession, and used resources from "external forces" to manipulate public opinion.
The charges, according to Taiwan's defense ministry, were an example of the "despotic and pigheaded thinking of an authoritarian regime trying to divide our people, belittle our government, and conduct cognitive warfare."
Such reports, according to the ministry, "exploit the free flow of information in our democratic society to piece together and fabricate personal data," which China has released on a regular basis.
"Defending national security and protecting the safety and well. being of the people is the unshirkable duty of every military officer and soldier," stated the statement.
