Without Taiwan, INTERPOL is incomplete and insecure

International organizations serve as important platforms for global governance. Participating in these organizations allows Taiwan to connect with the world, providing a way to utilize its soft power and give back to the global community. However, for political reasons, Taiwan has been unable to participate in INTERPOL for over 39 years. Yet, at the same time, as transnational crime flourishes in this era of globalization, Taiwanese passports, which enjoy visa-free access to 145 countries and territories, have become prime targets for transnational criminals. This is a threat that should not be underestimated.

Taiwan's capacity to carry out border security checks and combat transnational crimes such as terrorism and human trafficking is severely hampered by its lack of access to real-time criminal intelligence shared through INTERPOL's I-24/7 system and its stolen and lost travel documents database. Taiwan's long-standing exclusion from INTERPOL means that vital exchanges of intelligence are often out of date and incorrect. Taiwan's inability to participate in associated INTERPOL meetings, activities, and training has created a significant gap in the global security and antiterrorism network.

Taiwan's experiences can serve as a valuable reference; Taiwan is willing to actively engage with INTERPOL

In 2022, Taiwan's police authorities uncovered a shocking new type of human trafficking occurring in Cambodia and Myanmar. Operating under highly organized corporate models, crime syndicates had used online platforms to recruit people from all over the world, promising overseas job opportunities as bait. In reality, victims were held captive, forced to work in scam call centers, and subjected to such inhumane treatment as electric shocks, beating, drugging, and sexual violence in order to coerce them into aiding the syndicates' many illegal activities, including transnational fraud, the laundering of cryptocurrencies, and drug and human trafficking.

Reports by Taiwan's police authorities to INTERPOL were to no avail. Instead, Taiwan had to rely on police forces in friendly countries to pass on intelligence and cooperate in investigations. Taiwan also mobilized a national cross-government antifraud team to carry out preventative, deterrence, rescue, and investigative operations and stop any more Taiwanese people from being coerced into fraudulent activities. As of July 2023, 478 victims had been successfully rescued.

Information shared by Taiwan has aroused international attention, and friendly police forces in Europe, the United States, Southeast Asia, and elsewhere are now aware of this new type of crime, whose victims have hailed from a wide range of nations. Only by combining international resources and conducting cooperative investigations can laws be enforced and can this global security issue be addressed.

With global security of vital importance, support for Taiwan's meaningful participation in INTERPOL remains essential

When China applied for accession to INTERPOL in 1984, it attached conditions that contravened the spirit of the INTERPOL Constitution. China took over Taiwan's membership rights and status and constantly cited so-called "political issues" to ensure that INTERPOL excluded Taiwan from substantive participation in the organization, creating a breach in crime prevention and intelligence sharing. This has also made Taiwan's efforts to fight transnational crime and make the world a better place all the more difficult.

We are unwilling to accept Voltaire's assertion that "history is nothing more than a tableau of crimes and misfortunes."

I ask everyone to support Taiwan's participation in INTERPOL's annual General Assembly as an observer. This would allow Taiwan's police authorities to participate in various activities, meetings, and training, interact with other countries, and address the deficiency in transnational crime intelligence exchange. This is not a political issue. Global security concerns us all. Let Taiwan and INTERPOL work together.

(Chou Yew-woei is Commissioner of the Criminal Investigation Bureau, Republic of China [Taiwan].)