Taiwan’s former president and his wife were sentenced to life in prison on Friday on charges of embezzlement and accepting bribes. His supporters believe his prosecution was politically motivated owing to his staunch stance on Taiwanese independence from mainland China.

Chen Shui-bian served from 2000 to 2008, and was Taiwan’s second democratically elected leader. He was the first from outside the politically dominant Nationalist Party, the Kuomintang, which has ruled Taiwan since 1949 and is now in power again.

Chen was charged with embezzling $3.15 million and receiving at least $9 million in bribes. He and his wife were both fined a total of $15 million. Chen has denied the charges and says he is being prosecuted by current President Ma Ying-jeou because of his anti-China stance.

The centerpiece of Ma’s policies has been the improvement of ties between Taipei and Beijing. Although the Nationalist Party that Ma leads has made clear that it finds Mr. Chen’s support for Taiwanese independence from China to be misguided, Ma has denied any correlation between these political disagreements and the charges against Chen.

Nearly a third of Taiwanese citizens do not believe their president.

A poll conducted by television station tvbs found that 30 percent of Taiwanese people believe the sentences were politically motivated. Hundreds of demonstrators assembled outside the courthouse where Chen’s trial was conducted, with many wielding signs bearing such phrases as “Stop Political Persecution” and “Free A-bian,” which is an affectionate nickname for Chen.

The current government of Taiwan is the last remnant of the Chinese Kuomintang regime, which was overrun in 1949 by Communist rebels under Mao Zedong. The Communist forces established the People’s Republic of China on the Chinese mainland, and exiled the Kuomintang regime to the island of Formosa (now called Taiwan). At no time in its history has Taiwan been controlled by Communist China.

In an effort to oppose communism and champion democracy, the United States originally strongly supported Taiwan. Both the 1954 Mutual Defense Treaty and the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act promise U.S. defense of the island.

But recent years have witnessed deterioration of this support. Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush both opposed full Taiwanese independence, preferring that the situation remain in its current state of limbo. President Barack Obama is expected to maintain the same stance, espousing such policies as the “three nos” that President Clinton endorsed, which essentially muzzled pro-independence Taiwanese citizens. Mr. Obama has said he “strongly supports” the efforts of Ma Ying-jeou and Chinese President Hu Jintao to reduce tensions between Taipei and Beijing.

Modern America is unwilling to maintain its once resolute stance at Taiwan’s side for fear of upsetting China. Beijing remains committed to establishing dominance over the Taiwanese people.

Herbert W. Armstrong, the late founder and editor in chief of the Trumpet’s predecessor, the Plain Truth, predicted the fate of Taiwan more than 50 years ago. In a Sept. 19, 1958, letter, he wrote, “Will Red China invade and capture [Taiwan]? In all probability, yes …. The Red Chinese will ‘save face,’ and the United States, with many American troops now on Taiwan, will again lose face!” To learn about the biblical prophecies Mr. Armstrong based that forecast on, request our free publications Russia and China in Prophecy and The United States and Britain in Prophecy.

Ma’s commitment to increase ties with China will only hasten Taiwan’s loss of freedom and America’s loss of face.

If the 30 percent of Taiwanese from the tvbs survey are correct in believing political motivation contributed to Chen’s prosecution, it should serve as a sobering indication of how close China is to controlling Taiwan.

As editor in chief Gerald Flurry wrote in August 1998, “These 21 million [Taiwanese] people are going to be forced into the Chinese mold; and it is going to happen for one reason: because of a pitifully weak-willed America.”