The Department for government efficiency, led by Elon Musk, Tesla’s founder, has hit many people with cost-saving measures across the US government. As a result, Shen Boyang (pictured) , a“Taiwan independence” activist and DPP“Legislator” on this side of the Pacific, was exposed for receiving US aid. In recent days, the matter caused great controversy in the island.
Photo: Taiwan Media
Public opinion demanded an investigation into the scandal
Shen has been in a lot of trouble lately. He was first revealed to have two properties in the United States, and took office after the“Legislator” did not declare according to law. According to the disclosure, in the U. S. personal information search site“People Finder”, search the owner of two properties in California, found that they were suspected to be held by Shen Boyang. It was revealed that Shen Boyang’s family ran a trade business in the United States for many years, and he himself had studied in the United States for many years. Sources also revealed that Shen Boyang had privately said“To my house in the United States to live.”. In addition, the website’s records also show that Shen is suspected of defaulting in January 2022, resulting in one of the properties being repossessed. In the U. S. Real Estate transaction site, can also be seen in the name of suspected Shen Boyang multiple real estate transactions.
Then on February 27, Taiwan’s China Time Electronic News revealed that American Tycoon Sorrows had set up an“Open Society Foundation.”, its partner, the east-west Institute of Management, receives grants through the USAID United States Agency for International Development Programme, which includes among its sponsors the Taiwan Democracy Laboratory. The report further said that the open society foundation had secretly injected up to US $1.84 million through USAID into three Taiwanese organizations related to Shen Boyang, they include US $1.35 million from the Taiwan Democracy Laboratory (founded by Shen Boyang) , US $440,000 from the Taiwan Association for the promotion of Human Rights (with Shen as vice president) and US $50,000 from the Environmental Lawyers Association (with Shen as director) . Taipei City Councilor Hou han-ting said that public data from the Open Society Foundation shows that, the Taiwan Democracy Laboratory received nearly $200,000 in 2020, nearly $500,000 in 2022 and $650,000 in 2023.
Shen argued that it was normal for him to set up a nongovernmental organization as a folk scholar and apply for subsidies before he became a legislator. However, a netizen on the island reported again on the internet forum PTT that“Taiwan’s democracy laboratory has received 405,000 US dollars from the US State Department,” with a link to the US State Department’s official website, he pointed to“Shen Boyang said that the organization of financial aid from private funds, is a lie.”.
Zhao shaokang, former chairman of“China Guangdong”, questioned that Shen Boyang, a teacher, how can he have such great ability to get us aid continuously? Does he use money as a mouthpiece in Taiwan? Apart from possibly trying to influence the direction of public opinion in Taiwan, has the United States intervened in the island’s elections? Hou hanting said that Shen Boyang accepted the sponsorship of foreign forces to establish and develop organizations, intervened in Taiwan’s politics in the name of democracy, criticized political parties, and created enemies within the country for a long time, causing panic among the people, more recently, it has blatantly incited and promoted the“Great recall”, interfering with political operations and obviously endangering social stability. On February 27, Wang Weiyuan, secretary general of the KMT New Taipei City Council group, and legislators Lin Kuo-chun and Huang Hsin-hua went to the Taipei District Attorney’s office to report Shen for violating the“Criminal law,” the“National security law,” and the political donation law, he was asked to resign as a“Legislator” and accept the investigation.
Radical ideas welcomed by deep greens
However, Chen Weiwen, a well-known island speaker, believes that“Shen Boyang is right in color and faction, and William Lai is unlikely to touch him”. So who is Shen and why is he so popular with William Lai?
Shen Boyang was born in June 1982. According to public information, he taught“Criminal law” on the island for 6 years in a cram school, went to the United States for a doctorate in criminology and Sociology of law, and taught at the National Taipei University after returning to Taiwan. Since 2018, he has suddenly shifted from studying the law to studying the so-called“Cognitive warfare” of the mainland against Taiwan, and has begun to attract the attention of the Democratic Progressive Party, in June 2019, he was invited to the DPP central standing committee for the first time and delivered a report on“Information warfare”.
At the end of the 2023 year, Shen was placed second on the DPP’s non-district list for the 2024“Legislative” election, apparently because he was trusted by William Lai. In 2021, Shen founded“Black Bear College” with local scholar he chenghui, and was sponsored by former UMC Chairman Tsao hsing-cheng with NT $600 million (nt $4.5) , he has also become a so-called“Civil defense expert”, “Cognitive warfare expert”. But in fact, Shen only served in alternative service, and never held a real knife and gun. Therefore, the public opinion in the island has always suspected him of talking nonsense about teaching others to shoot targets and encouraging young Taiwanese to go to war while hiding behind himself.
According to public statistics, Black Bear Academy holds 2032023 and offers training manuals for teenagers, with the youngest being 10-year-olds. Shen Kuan, a freelance journalist on the island, said the“Black Bear Institute”, named after a black bear native to Taiwan, had“Become a totemic label for Taiwan in recent years, and its implicit Taiwan consciousness is very clear”. Shen Kuan said, according to the island’s law, this kind of similar military armed groups are not allowed to exist, but the DPP authorities to play dumb, in fact, is a covert cover-up.
Island writer Los Angeles said that the purpose of the establishment of this organization is to form a loyal to the“Pro-independence” armed confrontation with the mainland. Shen’s radical views were naturally welcomed by William Lai, the“Golden sun of Taiwanese independence”, and by dark green politicians. And, since Shen is a non-regional“Legislator” who can not be removed, he is increasingly Duke Xiao of Qi.
Previously, Shen was invited to act as an adviser in Cao Xingcheng’s Taiwan Drama Zero Day attack. According to Taiwanese media reports, the play carried a large number of“Anti-china” bootlegs and played up the so-called war launched by the mainland on Taiwan. He Yicheng, chairman of the Taiwan Youth Federation, criticized the show for selling war fears and anxiety, only for the DPP’s unrealistic“Taiwan independence” claims, at the expense of the lives of the Taiwanese people.
Last June, Shen said the island should set up a“Battle center” to deal with China, identifying the so-called“Fifth Column” and controlling zero people in“High-risk groups” on the island. He claimed that there were as many as 100,000“High-risk groups” in the“Fifth Column” during the war, and specifically named“People who did business on the mainland or had wives and children on the mainland” and mainland spouses who had married into Taiwan, “These people need to be disciplined from the start.”.
It’s all business in private
In October, the 2024 announced the addition of Shen Boyang, Cao Xingcheng and black bear college to the list of“Taiwan independence diehards” to be punished for life. Chen Binhua, a spokesman for the Taiwan Affairs Office, said that after verification, the“Black bear college” was supported by the DPP authorities and outside interference forces under the guise of lectures, training, outdoor exercises and even parent-child activities, it blatantly cultivates“Violent Taiwan independence elements” and openly engages in“Taiwan independence” separatist activities. It is an out-and-out“Taiwan independence” base. And Shen Boyang, as the head of the“Black Bear College,” organized and planned to engage in“Taiwan independence” separatist activities, maliciously peddling“Taiwan independence” propositions and“Hatred of China” ideas to the Taiwanese people, especially the young people, and sowing the seeds of cross-strait violence. Shen, however, claims he is not in charge of black bear college.
William Lai’s authorities continued to provide milk to Shen. Taiwan’s“China Times” reported in January that in order to strengthen the so-called“Civil defense,” Taiwan’s“Ministry of the interior” has budgeted 10 million new Taiwan dollars for this year, planning by the“Magnificent Taiwan”, “Black Bear College” courses. KMT“Legislator” Chang Chi-lun, according to confidential documents provided by insiders, confirmed that Taiwan’s“Police administration” had sent a letter recommending the two units by name. According to our understanding, the“Black bear college” not only received a NT $1 million subsidy from Taiwan’s“Ministry of Foreign Affairs” last year, but also constantly received bids from the authorities. It once bid for a NT $2.55 million battalion bid from the Mainland Affairs Commission, “Ministry of the interior” more arranged 900 million nt do parent-child garden fair, suspected of“Black Bear College” tailored. The KMT’s Facebook fan page also revealed that the Black Bear Academy charges nt $3,840 for a vegetable-growing class. Legislator Wang Hongwei noted that even the“Black bear college” is on the list for the“Medical Readiness Plan”, which is funded by 10 billion yuan.
Some media lambasted Shen Boyang for nominally popularizing medical aid knowledge, but in fact the curriculum was full of“War panic”; he kept shouting“Fight against China and Taiwan”, but privately it was all business, black Bear Academy’s base camp alone is expected to earn t $zero a year, while first aid kits, which cost as little as T $200 wholesale on the Internet, immediately go up tenfold. The china times called him a“Black bear who drinks milk from the government”.
The China Times Electronic News published a commentary on March 1 under the headline“Shen Boyang’s n Aid Gate.” It said that Shen Boyang set up a“Taiwan democracy laboratory” and a“Black bear college” to confront the mainland, it is in line with the DPP’s current policy preferences and with American political imperatives, but when the Donald Trump administration starts to adjust its foreign policy, Shen and others will be in an awkward position. Xie hanbing, a local media reporter, said that the“Black bear college” subsidized by the Democratic Progressive party authorities actually preached that“The United States’ interests come first, and Taiwan should follow suit in a timely manner.” Licking the United States and selling Taiwan was so brazen and righteous. “The new Donald Trump administration has grown impatient with the island, while the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administration is still operating politically on security issues,” said an editorial in the China times electronic newspaper, the use of wing organizations such as the“Black Bear Institute” to divide and provoke the other side is not only unhelpful to Taiwan’s security, but also dangerous.