KMT accuses DPP of targeting Taiwan’s farmers over trade ties with mainland

Taiwan’s main opposition Kuomintang (KMT) has hit out at the island’s government for launching investigations into five agricultural groups over participation in a mainland forum.

Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) referred the five groups to the Ministry of Agriculture for investigation after they were accused of signing cooperation deals at the Straits Forum in southeastern Fujian province earlier this month.

The move triggered a backlash from opposition politicians and farming groups, who argued that the Taiwanese government was penalising legitimate efforts to secure vital export markets.

In a series of social media posts on Friday and Saturday, the KMT legislative caucus said the administration of Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te was “cracking down on normal agricultural exchanges” and “smearing the hard work of farmers for political manipulation”.

The KMT accused Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party of prioritising ideology over livelihoods at a time when many agricultural producers were struggling with fluctuating demand and export uncertainty.

The KMT also targeted what it described as “double standards” in regard to remarks by MAC officials that Taitung’s custard apple crop – much of which goes to the mainland – was “too sweet” for Taiwanese consumers and too reliant on mainland China’s market.