Taiwan’s media regulator national communications commission (NCC) has decided against renewing the broadcasting license for Chung T’ien Television (CTI), which is a pro-China TV station, The Guardian reports. Around 30 per cent of the complaints received by the NCC from the people have been regarding the CTI.

The channel is said to have a “self-discipline” problem and hasn’t implemented internal controls despite numerous requests from the NCC. CTi’s parent company Want Want China Holdings is headed by a pro-Sino business baron Tsai Eng-meng.

The channel is accused to be lobbying for Beijing and Taiwan’s opposition Kuomintang (KMT) . It is said to spread negative propaganda about the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government. CTi expressed discontentment at NCC’s decision and said, “Today is the darkest day for freedom of the press and freedom of speech in the 30 years since Taiwan’s liberation.”

NCC had done an audit in 2019 that revealed that CTi devoted 70% of its airtime to KMT politician Han Kuo-yu, who challenged current Taiwanese premier Tsai Ing-wen in the previous presidential elections. Han had raised the issue of the crackdown of dissenting media last month and called CTi as one of the few media channels that gives a voice to groups that want a complete unification of China.

Wang Liqiang, a former Chinese spy, has previously stated that Xi Jinping’s government had paid CTi for unfavourable coverage of the DPP ahead of the elections in Taiwan this year.