A Taiwanese general has become the first officer to lose his job for failing a "loyalty" test introduced after the island's worst espionage case in 50 years, media and officials said Wednesday.
Like several other officers in key positions, the unnamed lieutenant general was subjected to a lie detector test, but is the only one not to pass so far, the Taipei-based China Times said.
Defence ministry spokesman David Lo declined to tell AFP what questions the lieutenant general had been asked and would not give other details about the test, which he described as a "confidential national secret".
The verdict is not final, and the lieutenant general is allowed to take a similar test at a later date, Lo said.
A large number of senior military officers are being required to take the test after the arrest in January of Major General Lo Hsien-che over claims that he spied for China, reportedly after he was lured by sex and money.
According to Lo, the test has become a requirement for leading officers in sensitive areas such as intelligence and counter-intelligence, communications, military police and political warfare.
Taiwan and China have spied on each other ever since they split in 1949 at the end of a civil war.
Beijing sees Taiwan as part of its territory awaiting reunification, and refuses to renounce the use of force despite improving ties since Ma Ying-jeou of the China-friendly Kuomintang party became the island's president in 2008.
Share This Article With Planet Earth
