shawn yang

A Taiwanese comedian spent 2.5 minutes mocking Xi Jinping on stage. Prosecutors say a Chinese handler paid $14,000 to have his arms and legs broken. Taiwan indicted five men on October 21 for staging a fake car accident against comedian Huang Yihao. Prosecutors say a Chinese individual identified only as “K” offered NT$450,000 to a former private investigator to track Huang and make sure he was hospitalized, too injured to perform. The investigator allegedly put a GPS tracker on his scooter, mapped his routine, and passed the details to K. The job was then subcontracted down a chain of local men. On September 11, a car hit Huang near his home. He suffered only a bruised pelvis. K reportedly refused to pay the remaining NT$200,000 because the injury wasn’t severe enough. This was the second attack in four months. In May, hours before a show, his venue was hit with paint bags mixed with feces. Prosecutors concluded that was also directed by a Chinese individual as “cross-border repression.” Prosecutors are seeking sentences of up to 5.5 years and say the case shows Beijing using local collaborators and violence to create a chilling effect inside a democracy. Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council says current laws don’t fully cover surveillance and injury directed from abroad, and is calling for amendments. Huang’s own reflection: he gained a new understanding of the fear people feel under CCP rule.